Source: China News Network | March 20, 2024 10:07:33
Original title: Changba rocket “unlocks” new capabilities for first lunar exploration mission
China News Service, Hainan Wenchang, March 20 (Reporter Ma Shuaisha) On March 20, the Long March 8 carrier rocket (hereinafter referred to as the “Chang 8 Rocket”) successfully launched the Queqiao 2 relay satellite and The Tiandu-1 and Tiandu-2 communication technology test satellites completed their first lunar exploration orbital launch mission.

How does the Changba rocket send the Queqiao-2 satellite into the Earth-moon transfer orbit? Facing new challenges, what new capabilities has Changba Rocket unlocked? Xu Shanshu, deputy chief designer of the Long March 8 launch vehicle of the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, accepted an interview with the media and gave her interpretation.
As the main new generation medium-sized launch vehicle in China, the Changba rocket has filled the 3 to 5-ton carrying capacity gap in China’s sun-synchronous orbit and has a variety of orbital launch capabilities. Since its first flight in 2020, the Changba rocket has carried out three missions. The first two missions sent satellites into sun-synchronous orbits. This flight achieved the Earth-moon transfer orbit launch for the first time.

In this mission, the Changba rocket adopts a two-stage and a half configuration with two liquid boosters bundled in the core stage. The total length of the rocket is 50.3 meters, with a 4.2-meter-wide and 8-meter-high fairing. With a weight of no less than 1.3 tons The Earth-Moon Transfer Orbital Transport Capacity will directly send the Queqiao-2 relay satellite into an orbit with a perigee altitude of 200 kilometers and an apogee altitude of 420,000 kilometers.
Compared with flying to other orbits, what are the difficulties of launching to the lunar exploration orbit? Xu Shanshu said that due to the special nature of the earth-moon transfer orbit, the launch window of the Queqiao-2 relay star is only three days per month. In order to seize the precious flying “opportunity”, the scientific research team adopted a multi-window and multi-trajectory design, planning two windows every day during these three days.
6 windows correspond to 6 ballistics, which means there are 6 sets of flight plans. Xu Shanshu said that this design can increase the probability of rocket launch and improve launch flexibility. Even if one window is missed, there are other windows to choose from, and there is no need to wait too long.
As a young member of the “Long March Family”, the Changba rocket has provided commercial “carpooling” services in the past two launches and has not carried out any major national project launches. In this mission, how does this new generation rocket stand out from the “Long March family”?
Xu Shanshu said that on the one hand, the carrying capacity of the Changba rocket exactly matches the launch requirements of the Queqiao-2 relay star. At the same time, the Changba rocket inherits the technical achievements of the Long March 5 and Long March 7 launch vehicles, and its core stage assists The push is very close to the Long March-7 launch vehicle, the “cargo train” of the Tianzhou spacecraft, and its safety and reliability are guaranteed.
In order to further improve flight reliability, the Changba rocket has made a number of technical improvements, especially in the face of interference from high-altitude winds. For the first time, automatic rolling load reduction technology is used, allowing the rocket to actively roll and adjust the “windward side” in the air according to the direction of the wind, just like doing Tai Chi, and cleverly resolve the impact of high-altitude wind on the rocket body structure.
Xu Shanshu said that the success of this launch proved from a practical level that the Chang-8 rocket is fully capable of launching from the Earth-to-Moon transfer orbit, providing a new rocket model choice for future lunar exploration missions. In addition, the Changba rocket is expected to occupy a market advantage in commercial launches of 3 to 5 tons in sun-synchronous orbits.
It is understood that the Changba rocket will usher in the first flight of a new configuration in the second half of this year, and will immediately switch to high-frequency launches, becoming one of the main rockets in China’s subsequent commercial space launch market.
Editor: Chen Shiwen Editor in charge: Liu Liang