China’s Shenzhou 18 astronauts have taken time out from conducting experiments and maintenance duties to take a closer look at planet Earth.
The Shenzhou 18 mission launched from Jiuquan spaceport on April 26, sending mission commander Ye Guangfu and crewmembers Li Cong and Li Guangsu to China’s Tiangong space station. Now, as the crewmembers near the end of their six-month-long stay in orbit, they’ve taken a look at where they came from.
“Hello, I’m astronaut Ye Guangfu. Today, please follow my camera as we are taking a bird’s eye view of Dongfeng Space City,” Ye said (in Chinese) in a video from orbit aired recently by state broadcaster CCTV. “What you see now is the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, established in October 1958. It is the earliest and the largest comprehensive space launch center in China and the only crew space launch site in the country.”
Ye Guangfu also zoomed in on, and introduced, Wenchang spaceport. “Wenchang Satellite Launch Center is located in the east of Hainan Island. This is the first open launch site in China and one of the few low-latitude launch sites in the world,” Ye said.
Related: Chinese astronauts perform record-breaking spacewalk outside Tiangong space station (video)
Wenchang opened in 2014 to allow China to launch new, larger rockets, like the Long March 5 and Long March 7. Unlike earlier Chinese rockets, which use toxic, hypergolic propellants, these are mainly fueled by liquid hydrogen and kerosene, respectively.
The Long March 5B was used to launch the modules for Tiangong in 2021 and 2022. The Long March 7, meanwhile, is used to send cargo missions to the space station.
Wenchang’s role in China’s space program is set to grow in the coming years. A new launch pad is being built at Wenchang to facilitate launches of the in-development Long March 10 rocket. That powerful vehicle will be capable of launching crew, including sending astronauts to the moon — something China aims to achieve before 2030.
The Shenzhou 18 crew are closing in on six months in orbit, meaning they will soon be returning to Earth. The crew will, however, stay in space until the incoming Shenzhou 19 astronauts arrive aboard Tiangong. Shenzhou 19’s launch date has yet to be announced, but China does not provide much notice ahead of crewed launches. When the Shenzhou 18 trio do return, they will land in a designated touchdown zone near Dongfeng.
