China's next manned space mission, the first since 2016, will normally launch next June. During this mission, three taikonauts (Chinese astronauts) will integrate the central module of their new station.
The International Space Station (ISS) is no longer the only space laboratory currently in orbit. China has just launched the main module of its new laboratory. The country plans at least ten additional launches to deliver two other modules of the structure, but also cargo and manned missions.
The first of these crewed missions – Shenzhou 12 – is set to launch next June. This will be China's seventh manned space mission since 2003, when China became the third country to conduct manned spaceflight independent, after Russia and the United States.
As a reminder, the most recent of these manned missions was Shenzhou-11, in 2016. At the time, two astronauts had spent more than a month inside the Tiangong 2 space station. The structure was then desorbed for controlled atmospheric re-entry on July 19, 2019.
For this launch, the Shenzhou 12 spacecraft will be topped with a Long March 2 F rocket. In early April, both structures were delivered by rail to the launch center satellites of Jiuquan, in the Gobi desert. They are currently undergoing final assembly.
The Shenzhou 12 mission will send three taikonauts into low Earth orbit. Their ship will dock with the central module of the station. This manned mission will be preceded by a cargo mission aimed at delivering supplies and propellant to the module. This cargo capsule (Tianzhou 2) will probably launch in May aboard a Long March 7 rocket from the Wenchang base in southern China.
Chinese officials have yet to reveal the identities of the crew members for this upcoming manned mission. We also don't know how long it will last. We know, however, that until the end of the assembly of the station normally scheduled for 2022, China plans to launch four other cargo missions and as many crewed missions .
Once operational, this structure of one hundred tons (about one fifth of the mass of the International Space Station) will be able to accommodate up to three taikonauts for stays that can last up to six months. The station will eventually be able to accommodate more people (up to six), but for shorter periods.
On board, astronauts will conduct various scientific experiments and prepare for long-duration flights in space. Space physiology, fluid physics, materials science, astronomy… To date, a hundred experiments have already been selected from more than 800 national proposals. A few studies by international researchers will also be planned.
