China just sent some fresh supplies to its Tiangong space station.
A Long March 7 rocket topped with the robotic Tianzhou 6 freighter lifted off from Wenchang Satellite Launch Center on Hainan island Wednesday (May 10) at 9:22 a.m. EDT (1322 GMT; 9:22 p.m. local time on Hainan).
Tianzhou 6 is headed for the T-shaped Tiangong, which China finished assembling in low Earth orbit late last 12 months.
Related: The most recent news about China’s space program
Tianzhou 6 is full of clothes, drinking water and food for Tiangong’s current crew, the three astronauts of the Shenzhou 15 mission, in addition to the long run Shenzhou 16 astronauts, in accordance with the state-run Chinese broadcaster CCTV (opens in recent tab).
Shenzhou 15 launched last November and is scheduled to return to Earth this month. The three Shenzhou 16 astronauts will take their predecessors’ place on Tiangong.
As well as, Tianzhou 6 is carrying 1.7 tons of propellant, 1,540 kilos (700 kilograms) of which shall be transferred to Tiangong. The fuel infusion will allow the outpost to proceed maintaining its orbit, CCTV reported.
Tianzhou 6 marks the primary mission for a brand new and improved version of China’s robotic freighter. For instance, Tianzhou 6’s pressurized cargo segments can accommodate about 1,100 more kilos (500 kilograms) of payload than previous iterations of the spacecraft.
This added capability allows China to now launch resupply missions to Tiangong every eight months on average, versus every six months with previous Tianzhou vessels.
Tianzhou 6 is the primary of three missions scheduled to launch to Tiangong in 2023. The opposite two are Shenzhou 16 and Shenzhou 17, that are expected to lift off this month and toward the top of the 12 months, respectively.
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