Long March 5 Y8 arrives in Wenchang ahead of Chang'e 6
Long March 5 Y8 arrives in Wenchang ahead of Chang'e 6
This post was originally published on Ko-fi on March 15th 2024.
The China Aerospace and Science and Technology Corporation announced today via a post on Wechat/Weixin that parts of the Long March 5 Y8 vehicle had arrived in Wenchang.
CAST shared imagery of two large containers being removed from the transportation ship, likely containing the first and second stages of the vehicle.
The reason the containers are likely to contain these stages is their sheer size. The Long March 5's first and second stages are currently the only five-meter diameter stages in China. Part of the reason for the size is the use of liquid hydrogen as a fuel.
It's unknown outside of the China Aerospace and Science and Technology Corporation if the stages were transported with their engines, the four boosters have been known to travel with their engines installed.
The reason why the stages were delivered to Wenchang via ship was China's rail network having hundreds of tunnels, which allow for a maximum stage diameter of 3.35 meters during transportation, along with them being too awkwardly sized for aircraft. The island province of Hainan, of which Wenchang is located, also does not have a road connection to the mainland.
It's unclear if the boosters for the Long March 5 Y8 vehicle were also delivered alongside the two stages. The boosters could already be at Wenchang Space Launch Site, or be transported at a later date. Assembly of the launch vehicle cannot begin until the boosters arrive as they help hold the vehicle on the launch pad, similar to NASA's Space Launch System vehicle.
According to the China Aerospace and Science and Technology Corporation, the rocket will be assembled and tested with the Chang'e 6 spacecraft, which is the payload for the Long March 5 Y8 rocket, before it is rolled out from the vehicle assembly building.
The Chang'e 6 spacecraft was delivered to the Wenchang Space Launch Site in early January and is believed to have undergone some final testing already.
The launch of Chang'e 6 atop of the Long March 5 Y8 vehicle is currently expected to occur in May.
What is Chang'e 6?
Chang'e 6 is a lunar sample return mission from the far side of the Moon, the first to do so if successful, that will bring up to 2,000 grams of lunar samples back to Earth for study. The spacecraft was initially built as a backup for Chang'e 5, which successfully completed its mission back in late 2020.
The Chang'e 6 spacecraft in its launch configuration is believed to weigh 8,200 kilograms and consists of a service module, lander, ascent unit, and return vehicle.
The China National Space Administration plans to have the Chang'e 6 spacecraft land on the southern edge of the Apollo basin, approximately 43 degrees South and 154 degrees West. The planned duration of the mission is fifty-three days after the separation from the launch vehicle.