China’s space lab Tiangong-2 blasts into orbit

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CHINA’S SPACE LAB TIANGONG-2 BLASTS INTO ORBIT

China's second space lab Tiangong-2 was blasted off at 22:04 Beijing Time (14:04 GMT) on Thursday, September 15 from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China.

The highly-anticipated module was successfully launched from the Gobi desert and into the orbit as Chinese people across the globe celebrated the traditional Mid-Autumn Festival.

The space lab, carried by a Long March-2F rocket, will orbit the Earth, awaiting the Shenzhou-11 spacecraft which it is scheduled to dock with in October. 

When the two spacecraft rendezvous in outer space, they will conduct docking at a height of about 393 kilometers above the Earth’s surface. Two Chinese astronauts are then due to spend 30 days there carrying out experiments.

The 8.6-tonne Tiangong-2, with a length of 10.4 meters and maximum diameter of 3.35 meters, has a similar size to its predecessor, Tiangong-1. But the updated vehicle comes with more cutting-edge equipment and better living conditions for astronauts, allowing them to stay in outer space for up to 30 days.

The successful launch was the latest showcase of China's growing prowess in space. It paves the way for China to become the world’s third country, after the US and Russia, to operate a permanent space station. It is hoped this will launch around 2020. 

WHAT'S NEXT

China’s Tiangong-2 to host two astronauts in space for 30 days

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China will begin its longest manned space mission when it sends two astronauts to stay in the Tiangong-2 space lab for 30 days next month. 
Tiangong-2 is set to be launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China at 10:04 p.m. Beijing time on Thursday, coinciding with China’s Mid-Autumn Festival. The Shenzhou 11 spacecraft, carrying two astronauts, will blast off in October to dock with Tiangong-2.
The two are scheduled to spend twice as long in space as China’s previous record of 15 days. 
In order to help the astronauts live and work in the space lab, scientists have fitted out its interior with multifunctional tray tables on which they can eat, write and even do some scientific experiments.

"In order to make the astronauts comfortable, we carefully designed the lighting system and decorations in the module to make them feel less anxious. We also installed equipment to make life more convenient,” said Zhu Congpeng, chief designer of the Tiangong-2 space lab. 

Tiangong 2 is also equipped with a portable Bluetooth stereo. So when astronauts put on Bluetooth earphones, they can speak to people down on Earth while moving freely around the capsule. It’s also the first time that the astronauts can send and receive emails.
"In previous manned missions, people had to put on big headsets to contact Earth, so they could not go anywhere when speaking on the phone. Now all the talking up there will be through the Bluetooth stereo and earphones,” said Bo Linhou, equipment designer of Tiangong-2. 
A record 14 experiments will also be carried out in Tiangong-2. These experiments will cover cutting edge areas including space materials science, and space life science. Two of the experiments will be operated by astronauts aboard the space lab.