Tianzhou 7

Tianzhou 7

A Tianzhou 3D model
Mission type	Tiangong space station resupply
Operator	CNSA
COSPAR ID	2024-013A
SATCAT no.	58811
Mission duration	304 days, 22 hours, 58 minutes
Spacecraft properties
Spacecraft	Tianzhou-7
Spacecraft type	Tianzhou
Manufacturer	China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation
Launch mass	14,000 kg (31,000 lb)
Payload mass	7,400 kg (16,300 lb)
Dimensions	10.6 m × 3.35 m (34.8 ft × 11.0 ft)
Expedition
Space station	Tiangong space station
Start of mission
Launch date	17 January 2024, 14:27 UTC[1]
Rocket	Long March 7
Launch site	Wenchang Satellite Launch Center, LC-201
Contractor	China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology
End of mission
Disposal	Deorbited
Decay date	17 November 2024, 13:25 UTC
Orbital parameters
Reference system	Geocentric orbit
Regime	Low Earth orbit
Inclination	41.5°
Docking with Tiangong space station
Docking port	Tianhe aft
Docking date	17 January 2024, 17:46 UTC
Undocking date	10 November 2024, 08:30 UTC
Time docked	297 days, 14 hours, 44 minutes
Tianzhou 7 mission patch Shenzhou program Tianzhou program

Tianzhou 7 (Chinese: 天舟七号) was the seventh mission of the Tianzhou-class uncrewed cargo spacecraft, and the sixth resupply mission to the Tiangong Space Station. Like previous Tianzhou missions, the spacecraft was launched from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center in Hainan, China, on a Long March 7 rocket.

Mission history

On 20 November 2023, CMSA announced that Tianzhou 7 had completed manufacturing, and was delivered to Wenchang.^[2]

On 21 December 2023, Long March 7 Y8, the launch vehicle for this mission, arrived at the Wenchang Space Launch Site. It started to conduct stacking and tests with the already arrived Tianzhou 7.^[3]

On 17 January 2024 at 14:27 UTC, Long March 7 Y8 successfully lifted off from Wenchang SLS's LC-201, propelling Tianzhou 7 towards the Tiangong Station.^[4] The spacecraft docked successfully with Tiangong some three hours later at 17:46 UTC.^[5]

Tianzhou 7 undocked from Tiangong on 10 November 2024 at 08:30 UTC. While in free flight, the ship ejected a 6U CubeSat. It was deorbited over the Pacific Ocean on 17 November, beginning to burn up as it reentered the atmosphere at 13:25 UTC near Vanuatu.^[6]

Spacecraft

Main article: Tianzhou (spacecraft)

References

1. "Tianzhou 7". Next Spaceflight. Archived from the original on 17 January 2024.
2. Honge, Mo (20 November 2023). "China's Tianzhou-7 cargo spacecraft transported to launch site, mission logo revealed". Ecns.cn. Archived from the original on 24 January 2024.
3. "Rocket arrives at launch site for Tianzhou-7 cargo mission". The State Council of the People's Republic of China. 21 December 2023. Archived from the original on 12 January 2024.
4. "Long March 7 | Tianzhou 7". nextspaceflight.com. Retrieved 2024-01-17.
5. "China's cargo craft Tianzhou-7 docks with space station combination". The State Council of the People's Republic of China. 18 January 2024. Archived from the original on 20 January 2024.
6. McDowell, Jonathan (18 November 2024). "Jonathan's Space Report No. 839". planet4589.org. Retrieved 2024-11-21.