The statements in this article are based on reliable sources and are repeated at the end of this article
The launch time of the Shenzhou-18 manned spacecraft has been finalized and will be launched at around 20:50 on April 25, 2024. The mission of Shenzhou 18 this time is to take over the astronauts on the 17th and go home. And the three astronauts on the 18th are also the objects of great attention. [Dog's Head]
01
The space mission
Recall that year, the mainland's Shenzhou 5 manned spacecraft completed a manned space mission for the first time. It has become the third country in the world to possess manned space technology after the United States and the Soviet Union. At that time, for the success of this mission, the people of the whole country celebrated this special day in the whole world.
Because before that, we have heard too much news of failure and danger. Every Chinese is extremely eager and worried, and is full of hope for every attempt on the mainland.
But now, hearing again that a manned spacecraft is about to take off, it seems to have become a very common thing for us Chinese. Everyone takes it for granted that the mainland's spacecraft can complete its mission safely and smoothly, and that manned aviation operations have become a very common thing.
In the past 19 years, the mainland has experienced 12 successful manned space missions. The fact that manned space technology can be regarded as "commonplace" as it is now is generally due to the continuous development of the mainland's space industry and the unremitting efforts of the staff members.
On the one hand, the flight plan of Shenzhou 18 is to welcome the triumphant return of the three astronauts on Shenzhou 17. At the same time, they are also flying into space with the latest aviation missions.
The most interesting difference between Shenzhou 18 and 17 this time is the design on the spacecraft battery. No. 17 still uses nickel-cadmium batteries, while No. 18 has been replaced with lithium-ion batteries with higher energy and better safety performance.
The reason why this new battery is used is that the Shenzhou series spacecraft will be blocked by the space station assembly when docking, when the space station is forward or radially interfaced. At the same time, when receiving the grid-connected power supply of the space station, this kind of nickel-cadmium battery still has irregular charging and discharging, and at the same time, there is also a situation that long-term supplementary power is not discharged and is shelved for a long time.
Therefore, in response to these problems, Continental has also begun to work on a new generation of batteries very early. Now on Shenzhou 18, it has been completely replaced with this new generation of batteries, and it is also the first combat test of this battery.
And the No. 17 members, who went home this time, also achieved very important results. They will return with 407 special samples. The samples have been dismantled and stored by the astronauts on 17. When they have completed the handover ceremony and successfully returned home, the samples will be re-removed for installation.
And these samples are not simple, they are the first material samples to be exposed outside the cabin, which can be said to be an important milestone in the construction of China's space station.
When these samples are brought back for re-study, scientists have valuable experimental data. If many of the previous ideas were just conjectures, the experimental samples brought back allow scientists to verify whether the previous ideas were feasible.
02
Personnel situation
Now the three astronauts of Shenzhou 17 have been working in orbit for more than 5 months, and they have begun targeted training for the upcoming handover work.
In the space engineering space station this time, the rolling launch mode is still adopted, and after the previous spacecraft enters the launch state, the next spacecraft will also stand at the launch site and be on standby at any time. The advantage of this is that if anything happens to the previous ship, the later ship will launch support at the first time.
In addition to the regular maintenance of the space station, they will also have to carry out maintenance work outside the cabin. There are many uncertainties outside the cabin, so it is important for the operator to have a lot of experience and the ability to respond to accidents. And this level of maintenance is only the first time that this kind of maintenance work has been carried out since Shenzhou 17.
With the experience of the 17th member after their return, in the future astronaut training, in order to normalize and normalize the extravehicular maintenance work, the training of relevant experience will also be increased.
Regarding the identities of the three astronauts on the 18th, many netizens have also guessed for a long time. Many people said that according to the crew of Shenzhou 17 currently in orbit, Tang Hongbo had carried out the flight mission of Shenzhou 12, and now he was the first person to return to Tiangong on the 17th. Then there is a high probability that No. 18 may also be a veteran who has performed tasks before.
First of all, Ye Guangfu and Liu Yang are the initial guesses, but many netizens are more inclined to the initial conjecture, they think that China is likely to have the first female commander. However, as far as the current candidates are concerned, Wang Yaping has made many public appearances to participate in activities this year, and if he is the executor of this mission, he will not be able to appear in public.
And she herself said on the show that she wants to carry out a manned landing on the moon and hopes to give everyone a space lesson on the moon. This statement also basically confirms that Wang Yaping is not a member of Shenzhou 18 this time.
In addition, Liu Yang also participated in the event in public this time, so she should not be the executor of this mission. However, according to Liu Yang, he said that the fourth batch of reserve astronauts on the mainland has been selected. They have passed systematic training and will be able to participate in and carry out the continent's aviation program in the near future.
From this speech alone, netizens could not know whether there were female comrades in the fourth batch of astronauts. However, many people still hope that the mainland can have a first female commander who is highly skilled and can lead all members. According to the latest reports, it has been revealed that a new female astronaut has been selected on the mainland, although her information has not yet been made public.
On the Shenzhou 18 mission, there is no clear conclusion on whether there is a new female astronaut with the surname, and the identities of the three astronauts are still completely confidential.
Although Japan has indicated that it will soon carry out basic tests of space engines with the mainland at the Tiangong base, it has also extended an invitation to the whole world to welcome other countries and regions to participate in the mission. Moreover, among the 17 countries on the mainland that have opened up to the outside world, many plans have already been put on the agenda. But in the short term, there are still quite a few problems to overcome in cooperation and experimentation on these space stations.
In addition, if other countries want to participate in missions in space with mainland astronauts, they will face even more problems. After all, going to space is not an easy task, just in terms of training astronauts and language communication, it is still the first problem to be solved. After that, there are various differences in operating systems, and foreign astronauts need to be professionally trained.
Information sources:
[1] Finance Associated Press 2024.4.21 The Shenzhou-18 manned spacecraft is scheduled to be launched in the near future
[2] CCTV 2024.4.18 More than 30 technical status improvements! Shenzhou 18 is planned to be launched at an opportune time recently