China Space Military：Recon, Satcom, Navi, ASAT/BMD, Orbital Vehicle, SLV, etc.

[Bussard Ramjet]

China’s First Zero-Gravity 3D Printing Experiment Concluded Successfully

From February 22 until March 5, 2016, the research team organized by the Technology and Engineering Center for Space Utilization, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CSU-CAS), successfully implemented their first zero-gravity additive manufacturing (also known as 3D printing) experiment in the 28th DLR parabolic flight campaign at Bordeaux, France.

It is China’s first additive manufacturing experiment in zero-gravity. This experiment completed successfully in zero-gravity of 93 parabolas totally. The samples were printed successfully as designed, effects of zero-gravity on the manufacturing process and materials were observed and significant data were collected. Five different materials and two 3D printing technologies were tested.

As introduced by Professor WANG Gong from CSU, space manufacturing technology is a revolutionary and strategic technology for future space exploration, which will facilitated deeper space exploration by saving logistics from Earth. 3D printing is an important modeling technique to support space manufacturing with its efficiency and flexibility. However, since the environment in space is far different from that on earth, adaptively designed materials, mechanisms, and control systems are necessary. Various researches of space manufacturing technology have been launched in many countries nowadays. Compared with the 3D printer installed on the International Space Station, the printer developed by CSU and Chongqing Institute of Green and Intelligent Technology (CIGIT) is able to manufacture larger objects (up to 220mm×140mm×150mm), and with multiple materials, including fiber reinforced composites.

The research is sponsored by CAS and China Manned Space Program. This flight opportunity was granted by DLR under international cooperation framework between CSU and DLR, and Novespace provided technical.

Why do you need to go to France to conduct this zero gravity experiment?

 

[hk299792458]

Why do you need to go to France to conduct this zero gravity experiment?

Because the parabolic flight aircraft is operated by French company Novespace.

Henri K.

 

[JSCh]

China's dark-matter satellite concludes in-orbit test task
Source: Xinhua 2016-03-17 23:00:54

BEIJING, March 17 (Xinhua) -- China's first dark-matter detection satellite has completed three months of in-orbit testing, with initial findings expected to appear by the end of this year, according to the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

Dark Matter Particle Explorer (DAMPE) Satellite "Wukong" detected 460 million high energy particles in a 92-day flight, sending about 2.4 TB of raw data back to Earth, DAMPE chief scientist Chang Jin said.

Launched on Dec. 17, 2015 on a Long March 2-D rocket, "Wukong" was handed over to the CAS Purple Mountain Observatory on Thursday.

The four major parts of the payload - a plastic scintillator array detector, a silicon array detector, a BGO calorimeter, and a neutron detector - functioned satisfactorily. The satellite completed all set tests, with all its technical indicators reaching or exceeding expectations.

"Wukong" is designed for a three-year mission. It will scan space nonstop in all directions in the first two years and then focus on areas where dark matter is most likely to be observed in the third.

Dark matter is a hypothetical substance that is widely believed to account for around eighty five per cent of the matter in the universe, although it has not been directly observed asyet.

The dark matter hypothesis plays a central role in state-of-the-art modeling of cosmic structure formation and galaxy creation and evolution.

DAMPE chief scientist Chang Jin says the project is very exciting.

"Dark matter is at the leading edge of current science. It tops the basic frontier projects of science listed by the US, Europe, China, and Japan. Based on the laws of known physics, we had predicted and proved the existence of 61 kinds of basic particles, yet dark matter doesn't fit the characteristics of any of them. So any progress in dark matter research will probably bring a breakthrough in physics."

But at the same time, Chang Jin says there may be a long wait before the final results come out.

"So far, the satellite has worked in space for 85 days. All the devices on board won't start working until next week, measuring electrons and gamma protons. And it will take some time to collect enough high-energy particles before we can tell whether we have detected dark matters."

China has listed research into the origins of the universe as part of its 13th Five Year Plan.

In its own development plan, the Chinese Academy of Sciences has promised "major progress and breakthroughs" by 2030 in research into the formation and evolution of the universe.

A researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences explains about the data sent back from the space by Wukong in Dec. 24, 2015. (Photo/Xinhua)​

 

[JSCh]

Robotic arms of Tiangong-2 space lab.

 

[JSCh]

Slide from Long Lehao, China chief rocket engineer, during a science lecture to public. http://mp.weixin.qq.com/s?__biz=MzA...172&idx=1&sn=ca0acc063b2c82e4d68b15d385f57131

Translation:

Project prospects

Subsequent Lunar exploration:

• 2018 CE-4 Lunar far-side lander, and supporting earth-moon L2 relay satellite.
• 2023 Lunar far-side sample return
• 2025 Landing on south pole and large area surface exploration
• 2027 North pole resource development and utilization essential technology validation

 

[JSCh]

According to this NOTAM, Shijian-10 would be scheduled for re-entry on 18, April 16:05 to 16:30 local time, to land in Inner Mongolia, China.

 

[JSCh]

Embryos growing in space a 'giant leap'
By CHENG YINGQI (China Daily) Updated: 2016-04-18 07:15

Chinese mission shows cells can multiply, but colonization of the cosmos has a 'long way to go'

The latest results from experiments aboard China's SJ-10 recoverable satellite prove for the first time that early-stage mammal embryos can develop in space.

China launched the country's first microgravity satellite, SJ-10, on April 6. The return capsule will stay in orbit for several more days before heading back to Earth. An orbital module has been used to carry out experiments.

High-resolution photographs sent from SJ-10 show that mouse embryos continued to successfully develop throughout a 96-hour period.

Pictures sent from China's SJ-10 recoverable satellite show two-cell mouse embryos (top) four hours before the launch on April 6, and the same embryos that developed into blastocyst (bottom) 80 hours after the launch. CHINA DAILY

"The human race may still have a long way to go before we can colonize space but, before that, we have to figure out whether it is possible for us to survive and reproduce in outer space like we do on Earth," said Duan Enkui, a professor at the Institute of Zoology affiliated with the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the principal researcher involved with the experiment.

"Now, we have finally proven that the most crucial step in our reproduction－early embryo development－is possible in outer space."

Embryonic development starts with a single fertilized cell that divides into two cells, four cells, eight cells and so on, until the fertilized egg forms a blastocyst that can be implanted into a womb.

The first attempt to develop mammalian embryos in space was carried out by NASA's STS-80 Spacecraft in 1996. However, none of the 49 mouse embryos on board successfully developed.

"Since space experiments are expensive, no one attempted to develop embryos again in the decade following NASA's failure," Duan said.

In 2006, China launched the recoverable satellite SJ-8, which carried four-cell embryos in its orbital module. Scientists successfully received high-resolution pictures of those embryos. However, none grew.

"Our team analyzed the initial results and improved the experimental apparatus during the following 10 years but we still did not expect such a big success," Duan said of the latest mission.

The SJ-10 carried more than 6,000 mouse embryos in a self-sufficient, enclosed chamber that is about the size of a microwave oven. Everything involved, from the cell culture system to the nutrient solution, had been refined through hundreds of ground tests.

During the experiment, a camera took photographs of the embryos every four hours and sent those pictures back to Earth.

The images revealed that some of the embryos developed into advanced blastocysts in four days.

"This represents an important milestone in human space exploration," said Aaron Hsueh, a professor who specializes in reproductive biology at Stanford University. "One small step for mouse embryos, one giant leap for human reproduction," he said.

David Elad, a professor of biomedical engineering at Tel Aviv University in Israel, said the achievement represents both a technological leap forward and scientific excellence in assisted reproduction.

"The successful development from two cells to blastocyst in microgravity conditions without manual intervention represents top-level integration of deep understanding of the biological factors of early reproduction with cutting-edge technological skills," Elad said.

Peter C.K. Leung, a fellow of the Royal Society of Canada and of the Canadian Academy for Health Sciences at the University of British Columbia, was also enthusiastic about the breakthrough.

"The innovation has a paramount impact in pushing back the frontier of reproductive biology and will have immense potential benefits to human health," he said.

 

[JSCh]

Mouse Embryonic Cells Able to Develop in Microgravity Environment

Published on Apr 18, 2016

China's retrievable scientific research satellite has so far made 18 unmanned microgravity experiments out of a total of 19 planned and sent a series of scientific data as of Sunday, the 12th day since it was put into space.

One of the experiments the bullet-shaped satellite known as Shijian-10 or SJ-10 has conducted is the mutation of mouse embryonic cells which could be obviously seen from the photos it sends back every four hours from space.

"We sent them up in two-cell type, and now it has developed into the blastocyst stage -- the two cells developed into four, and then into eight, 16, and the blastocyst at last -- a whole stage of early embryonic development. The work had never been explored successfully before. The embryonic development is a very good model to study the whole life cycle, so the development instilled a lot of confidence in us," said Duan Enkui, a researcher of Institution of Zoology of Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Duan said the experiment fully proved that the mouse early embryonic cells can develop in space environment, which is of great significance for human beings to explore the universe.

"The development of embryo serves a good model for research of a whole life course, and it gives us a lot of confidence if the embryo develops," Duan said.

According to experts, the incubator with mouse embryos was the last loaded onto the satellite among the materials and devices for the 19 experiments, less than eight hours ahead of the launch. Experts said only by so doing can they guarantee the embryos not develop before arriving in space.

Experts had made much effort to meet the high storage demand that the embryos need.

Zhang Tao, a researcher from Shanghai Institute of Technical Physics of Chinese Academy of Sciences, said altogether 5,000 mouse embryonic cells were stored in various culture units in the incubator.

"This culture unit is as wide as a toothpick. Inside such room, we need to culture 150 to 200 cells, while ensuring the temperature and air as well as supply of nutrient solution; this unit is a key part that we explore for this project," Zhang said.

Zhang said the microscope is also specially made for the project.

"We specially developed a microscope that is able to capture the embryos for this project. This microscope, via a special algorithm, can capture the images of embryos and send it back to ground to enable the scientists see directly the process of embryo development in microgravity environment," Zhang said.

The embryo cells are fixed after the development, and subsequent experiments will start after SJ-10 returns, experts said.

#####​

https://twitter.com/x/status/721988582487908352

实践十号返回式卫星回收舱，16时30分准确降落在内蒙古四子王旗预定着陆区域。
Translation:
Shijian-10 has landed on scheduled 16:30 local time in designated landing zone Inner Mongolia, China

 

[JSCh]

Image of Shijian-10 (SJ-10) satellite reentry module after touchdown, this afternoon at 16:30.

 

[JSCh]

​

Pictures of experimental modules payload of SJ-10.

研究人员开启“实践十号”搭载的小鼠胚胎培养箱。
Researchers open up the mouse embryo incubator module.

研究人员正在打开“实践十号”上搭载的干细胞箱，取出干细胞样品。
Researchers open the stem cells module, to remove the stem cell samples.​

 

[JSCh]

研究人员从“实践十号”搭载的高等植物箱中取出在太空中开花的拟南芥和水稻。
Researcher took out the rice, Arabidopsis plant samples from the higher plant box.

这就是从太空回来的拟南芥，是不是长得很好啊？
The Arabidopsis plant has been flowering in space.​

 

[JSCh]

Capsule returns safely after 12-day odyssey
By Cheng Yingqi (China Daily) Updated: 2016-04-19 07:34

The recoverable capsule of China's first microgravity satellite, SJ-10, landed safely on Earth on Monday, marking a step forward in the country's space science research.[Photo/Xinhua]​

SJ-10's recoverable module comes back to Earth carrying a number of finished science experiments

The returning capsule from SJ-10, China's first microgravity satellite, landed safely at 4:30 pm on Monday in Siziwang Banner, in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region.

Resembling the shape of a bullet, the SJ-10 modules carried 19 experimental loads that sought to shed light on microgravity and bioscience. Eleven of the experimental loads were aboard the returning capsule following its 12 days in orbit. The other eight will remain in orbit for a few more days aboard SJ-10's orbital module.

"The returning capsule brought back nine bioscience experimental loads and two microgravity experimental loads," said Duan Enkui, deputy chief designer of scientific application systems on SJ-10 and a professor at the Institute of Zoology affiliated with the Chinese Academy of Sciences. "So far, all the experiments are going well, and some have already produced surprising achievements."

On Sunday, Duan's team announced that high-resolution images sent back from the satellite enabled scientists to prove that early-stage mouse embryos could develop fully into blastocysts. It was the first time such an experiment had been successfully conducted.

"Embryonic development starts from a single-cell fertilized egg, which divides into two cells, four cells, eight cells, ... until it forms a blastocyst that can be implanted in the womb," he said.

"Now, we have proved that this important process of embryonic development is possible in a space environment. Maybe, next time, if we have a returning capsule that stays in orbit for three or four days, we will actually be able to transfer the blastocysts into females and see the birth of space mice."

The embryos completed the whole development process within four days of the launch, but the returning capsule had to spend 12 days carrying out other experiments before it could head back to Earth. So scientists used chemicals to fix the developed blastocysts so they could carry out further analysis after their recovery.

Scientists collected data from other experiments during the 12 days in orbit.

For example, they lit organic glass and polyethylene materials inside one of the experimental loads and received data and images related to the burning process.

The experiment is aimed at understanding the risk of fire on manned spacecraft.

According to Wang Shuangfeng, an assistant researcher from the Institute of Mechanics affiliated to the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the person in charge of the burning experiment, the combustion process in the weightlessness environment of space is different to that on the ground.

"We have to figure out the fireproof properties of nonmetal materials so as to draw up usage standards and prevention protocols to ensure astronauts' safety," Wang said.

After the recovery of the returning capsule, more in-orbit experiments will be conducted, including larger scale combustion tests.

Hu Wenrui, the chief scientist for the SJ-10 project and a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said the recoverable capsule gives China an advantage in microgravity research.

"With the recoverable capsule, we can carry out some higher-risk experiments in the orbital module after we recover the experimental loads from the other experiments," Hu said.

Microgravity experiments are normally carried out in various space facilities, such as space stations, shuttles, research rockets and orbiting satellites.

So far, only China and Russia have launched recoverable satellites.

"Now, we are researching the possibility of producing reusable satellites, and I hope we can make some progress during the 13th Five-Year Plan," he said, referring to the 2016-20 blueprint.

 

[bobsm]

A second company to launch satellites
By Zhao Lei in Beijing and Zhou Lihua in Wuhan (China Daily)Updated: 2016-04-22 02:57

A Long March-2D carrier rocket carrying the "Jilin-1" satellites blasts off from the launch pad at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China's Gansu province, Oct 7, 2015. [Photo/Xinhua]

China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp, the country's largest missile maker, has established the country's second commercial launch company in an attempt to seize a share of the satellite launch market.

Expace Technology Co was founded and registered with the commerce department of Wuhan, capital of Hubei province, in mid-February, said Hu Xiaotao, general manager of the company.

Expace Technology has registered capital of 300 million yuan ($46.3 million) and will provide a satellite launch service to clients, Hu said.

Its parent company, China Sanjiang Space Group, a branch of China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp, is one of the three rocket developers in China. The two others are the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology in Beijing and the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology.

Previously, only China Great Wall Industry Corp in Beijing, part of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp, carried out commercial launches in the country.

Expace plans to launch a commercial version of the Kuaizhou 1 rocket for clients within the year. The next-generation Kuaizhou 11 rocket, which will have more capacity, is scheduled to make its first launch next year.

China Aerospace Science and Industry Corp began to develop Kuaizhou solid-fuel rockets in 2009, intending to form a low-cost, quick-response rocket family for the commercial space market.

The first flight of a Kuai-zhou rocket took place in September 2013, when the company launched the Kuaizhou 1 from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Gansu province to put an Earth-observation satellite into orbit. In November 2014, the Kuaizhou 2 sent another satellite into space from the same center.

"We are now in talks with more than 10 domestic and foreign companies that have expressed intentions to use this Kuaizhou 1 mission to lift their satellites," Hu told China Daily on Thursday. He declined to elaborate on the negotiations, citing business confidentiality.

"Moreover, some internet giants in China are keeping in touch with us to explore the possibility of cooperation in building a space-based internet," he said.

The government is very supportive of the founding of his company, since it will boost commercialization of the space launch sector, Hu added.

An insider from China Great Wall Industry Corp who requested anonymity said there is high demand for commercial launch for small and mid-sized satellites in the domestic and international markets, which will bring opportunities for Expace.

http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2016-04/22/content_24740726.htm

 

[JSCh]

China developing robotic arms for space stations: sources
Source: Xinhua 2016-04-21 15:25:25

BEIJING, April 21 (Xinhua) -- Chinese scientists are developing robotic arms for the country's space program, sources close to the research said Thursday.

According to a source from China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), the main contractor for the Chinese space program, research on the project began in 2007, and so far experts have built a robotic arm over ten meters long. The arm is capable of both payload lifting and precision maneuvers while in space.

With seven motorized joints and no fixed ends, it could crawl along the surface of a spacecraft like an inchworm, the source said, adding that the robotic arm could reach literally "every corner of the spacecraft" on its own calculations via a route planning system and attached cameras.

Another CASC source, meanwhile, said scientists were in fact developing two robotic arm models for the core module and an experimental module of China's planned space station, adding that the two arms could work in combination.

The robotic arms are China's latest space intelligence robotics engineering achievement, the source said.

Earlier reports said China plans to put a permanent space station into service around 2022. Its core module is expected to be launched around 2018.

With the current International Space Station set to end its mission in 2024, China could become the only country on Earth to operate a manned space station in the planet's orbit by then.

 

[JSCh]

Pakistan Inks Contract for Remote Sensing Satellite with China
Apr 21, 2016, Aadil Shadman

Pakistan’s Space & Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO) and China Great Wall Industry Cooperation (CGWIC) have signed a contract to develop and launch a remote sensing satellite, dubbed PRSS-1, into space.

Ahsan Iqbal, Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms, and Yin Limping, President of CGWIC, signed the agreement for the same on Wednesday.

While speaking at the occasion, Mr. Iqbal said that this historic agreement has carried Pakistan-China friendship from the Himalayas to the stars. He hopes to see the cooperation between the countries in space sciences to bring about more interaction in socio-economic projects and several other fields. The minister said that he considers space technology to be an important part of socio-economic development.



Continue reading -> http://propakistani.pk/2016/04/21/pakistan-inks-contract-for-remote-sensing-satellite-with-china/