The Long March 6 carrier rocket's first launch of the year was a success! What are its characteristics?

At 11:18 on June 20, my country successfully launched the Experimental Satellite No. 25 into space using the Long March 6 carrier rocket at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. The satellite entered the planned orbit smoothly and the launch mission was a complete success. Xinhua News Agency (Photo by Zheng Bin)

On the morning of June 20, my country successfully launched the Experimental Satellite No. 25 into space using the Long March 6 carrier rocket at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. The satellite successfully entered the planned orbit and the launch mission was a complete success. The Long March 6 model's first mission this year was a success. What are the characteristics of the Long March 6 carrier rocket used in this launch, and what measures have been taken to ensure the safety and smoothness of this launch mission?

The Long March 6 carrier rocket is a cryogenic liquid three-stage carrier rocket developed by the Eighth Academy of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. It has the ability to launch satellites of various types and different orbital requirements, and can launch single or multiple satellites with one rocket. Its sun-synchronous circular orbit carrying capacity can reach 1 ton (orbital altitude 700 kilometers).

In order to adapt to the layout and interface requirements of the satellite in the fairing, a new bracket was developed for this launch mission based on the overall configuration of the satellite to provide effective "lifting + support" for the satellite. At the same time, in terms of satellite separation, the Long March 6 carrier rocket used for the first time a point-type connection separation device consisting of four components, which is light in weight and functionally intensive. In addition, the dual redundancy function of its single component also improves separation reliability.

In view of the fact that there are many satellite operation items after the rocket is transferred to the launch area, the model team organized the design and operation personnel of both the rocket and the satellite to carry out special exchanges, and confirmed the timing, process, tools, precautions, etc. of the operation one by one. At the same time, special operation drills were arranged to optimize the operation process to ensure that the time is controllable, safe and smooth in actual operation.

In June, the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center was experiencing a season of frequent thunderstorms. The model team carried out re-identification, re-analysis, and re-confirmation of summer launch risks at the launch site. Based on the characteristics of the Long March 6 carrier rocket's "three-level" test and launch mode and unsupported launch, a special review of rain and lightning protection was carried out, including the effectiveness of rain and lightning protection measures, the physical implementation of various measures, and the timing of removing rain protection before launch, etc., to form a tabular inspection and confirmation document to ensure that the rocket meets the pre-launch operation and launch requirements in the thunderstorm season.

The Experimental Satellite No. 25 launched this time was developed by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation Fifth Academy Aerospace Dongfanghong Satellite Co., Ltd., and is mainly used to carry out new earth observation technology experiments. (Reporter Song Chen)