Shenzhou_12

Shenzhou 12

Shenzhou 12

2021 Chinese crewed spaceflight to the Tiangong Space Station

Shenzhou 12 (Chinese: 神舟十二号; pinyin: Shénzhōu shí'èr hào; lit. 'Divine Boat Number 12') was a Chinese spaceflight to the Tiangong space station, launched on 17 June 2021. It carried three People's Liberation Army Astronaut Corps (PLAAC) taikonauts on board a Shenzhou spacecraft. The mission was the seventh crewed Chinese spaceflight and the twelfth flight overall of the Shenzhou program. It was the first flight to Tiangong, and the first Chinese crewed spaceflight since Shenzhou 11 in 2016.[5]

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Background

Shenzhou 12 was originally planned as the second mission to visit the experimental, single-module Tiangong-2 space station, following Shenzhou 11. In 2016, plans for a second mission to Tiangong-2 were cancelled, and Shenzhou 12 was instead designated as the first crewed mission to the larger modular Tiangong space station, whose first module, the Tianhe core module, was launched on 29 April 2021.[6]

The crew of Shenzhou 12 was announced on 16 June 2021.[7]

Mission

The flight launched from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on 17 June 2021 at 01:22 UTC, following the launch of the Tianzhou 2 cargo spacecraft.[8] Just over 6.5 hours after launch, the spacecraft docked with the Tianhe core module's forward docking port. The crew entered the station later that same day at 10:48 UTC, becoming the first crew to visit Tiangong.[2]

During the mission, the Shenzhou 13 spacecraft remained on standby to serve as an emergency rescue vehicle.[9]

The Shenzhou 12 crew activated the station, carried out two spacewalks, and verified key technologies such as robotic arm operation, resource recycling, and long-term life support during the three-month mission.[10][2]

Spacewalks

On 4 July 2021, the first of two scheduled spacewalks was carried out by Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo. The taikonauts tested an updated version of the Feitian space suit, completed installation of the station's robotic arm, and installed exterior equipment for use on future missions, including a camera lifting bracket.[11] This marked the second ever Chinese spacewalk, after Zhai Zhigang's spacewalk nearly 13 years prior on Shenzhou 7. The spacewalk lasted for 6 hours and 46 minutes.[12]

On 20 August 2021, Nie Haisheng and Liu Boming carried out the second scheduled spacewalk of the mission. The two tested spacecraft equipment, installed a backup thermal control pump, and installed and raised panoramic camera D on the Tianhe core module. The spacewalk lasted for 5 hours and 55 minutes.[13][14]

Rendezvous test & return to Earth

Shenzhou 12 undocked from Tiangong on 16 September 2021 at 00:56 UTC. Following undocking, the spacecraft performed a test of radial rendezvous procedures which would be utilized on the following mission, Shenzhou 13.[4] After a successful test, Shenzhou 12 departed the station and returned to Earth on 17 September 2021, landing at the Dongfeng landing site in the Gobi Desert in Inner Mongolia at 05:34 UTC.[15]

Crew

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Nie Haisheng previously flew on Shenzhou 6 and Shenzhou 10.

Liu Boming previously flew on Shenzhou 7.[16]

Backup crew

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The backup crew of Shenzhou 12 would fly to the Tiangong space station as the crew of Shenzhou 13 in October 2021.[17]

See also

References

  1. [1]
    "Tiangong: Expedition 1". spacefacts.de. 20 August 2021. Retrieved 20 August 2021.
  2. [2]
    Clark, Stephen (17 June 2021). "Chinese astronauts enter Tiangong space station for first time". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  3. [3]
    Becker, Joachim (17 June 2021). "Spaceflight mission report: Shenzhou 12". spacefacts.de. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
  4. [4]
    Clark, Stephen (16 September 2021). "Shenzhou crew departs Chinese space station, heads for Earth". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 17 September 2021.
  5. [5]
    Barbosa, Rui C. (1 March 2021). "China preparing to build Tiangong station in 2021, complete by 2022". NASASpaceFlight.com. Retrieved 1 March 2021.
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    "ChinaSpaceFlight". Retrieved 22 May 2021.
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    "China unveils Shenzhou-12 astronauts for space station construction". Xinhua News Agency. 16 June 2021. Retrieved 17 June 2021.
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    Garcia, Carlos; Wang, Shubing (17 June 2021). "Chinese astronauts board space station module in historic mission". Reuters. Retrieved 18 June 2021.
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    Engineers Prepare Backup for Shenzhou-12 to Ensure Astronauts' Safety. CCTV Video News Agency. 18 June 2021. Retrieved 18 June 2021 – via YouTube.
  10. [10]
    Liu, Zekang, ed. (17 June 2021). "Shenzhou-12 crewed spaceship launch a complete success". China Manned Space Engineering Office. Retrieved 24 June 2021.
  11. [11]
    "Chinese astronauts complete first space walk outside new space station". NBC News. 4 July 2021. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  12. [12]
    Xie, Echo; Zheng, William (4 July 2021). "Chinese astronauts carry out country's second spacewalk". South China Morning Post. Retrieved 4 July 2021.
  13. [13]
    "神舟十二号航天员乘组圆满完成第二次出舱活动全部既定任务 计划9月中旬返回". Xinhua News Agency. 20 August 2021.
  14. [14]
    "Astronauts conduct second Chinese space station spacewalk". SpaceNews. 20 August 2021.
  15. [15]
    "Chinese astronauts return after 90-day mission to space station". Reuters. 17 September 2021. Retrieved 19 September 2021.
  16. [16]
    Jones, Andrew (17 June 2021). "Shenzhou-12 docks with Tianhe space station module". SpaceNews. Retrieved 19 June 2021.
  17. [17]
    "China announces Shenzhou-13 crew, including first female to space station". www.news.cn. Retrieved 11 December 2023.
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