The first battle of 2022 space launch was a success! my country successfully launched the test satellite No. 13

Good news about a "good start" from China's space industry!

At 10:35 on January 17, the Long March 2 Dingyao-70 carrier rocket ignited and launched at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, successfully sending the Test-13 satellite into the predetermined orbit. The launch mission was a complete success, officially marking the beginning of China's space launch in 2022.

GIF source: Our Space

The Long March 2D carrier rocket that carried out this launch mission is a room-temperature liquid two-stage carrier rocket developed by the Eighth Academy of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. It has a takeoff thrust of 300 tons and a carrying capacity of 1.2 tons corresponding to a 700-kilometer sun-synchronous circular orbit. It has the ability to launch single and multiple satellites to meet different orbital requirements.

Image source: Sina Weibo @ Xinhua News Agency Photographer: Li Chunlei

The minus 37 degrees Celsius challenge was successful!

The mission began after the winter solstice, and the temperature at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center once dropped to minus 37 degrees Celsius.

The 2-meter diameter strapping adapter used in this mission was used for the first time on the Long March 2D carrier rocket, further expanding the types of satellite-rocket interfaces of the Long March 2D carrier rocket. Currently, the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center is in extremely cold weather of around minus 30 degrees Celsius, which puts great pressure on the test launch work. In order to ensure that the rocket is not affected by the low temperature environment, the test team worked closely with the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center and took a number of measures to ensure that the test and launch environment meet the requirements.

The Chang Zheng 2D rocket test team filled the gaps in the rocket body with silicone, dressing the rocket in a "warm coat" made of high-tech materials, and coordinated with the launch site on an improved launch process for low temperatures to improve the rocket's ability to adapt to low temperatures.

Image source: Sina Weibo @China Aerospace News

The rocket assembly team needed to complete the installation by hand outdoors in freezing temperatures. Faced with the severe test of the harsh environment, the test team encountered no problems during the two transfers.

Main mission: Conduct space environment detection

It is understood that the Experiment 13 satellite was developed by the Microsatellite Innovation Institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. It is mainly used to carry out space environment detection and related technology verification tests. The satellite will further enhance my country's space environment detection capabilities and create a new situation in space environment detection.

It is reported that this launch is the 58th launch of the Long March 2D carrier rocket, the 151st launch of the Long March series of carrier rockets developed by the Eighth Academy, and the 406th launch of the Long March series of carrier rockets.

This year, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation plans to schedule more than 40 space launch missions, including more than 15 launches of the Long March 2D carrier rocket, which is expected to create a record for the highest annual launch number of this type of rocket and is expected to become the single-type rocket with the most annual launches in the Long March series of carrier rockets.

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Comprehensive sources: China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, People's Daily, CCTV News, Beijing News, Chinese Academy of Sciences Microsatellite Innovation Institute, Our Space, etc.