Long March 8 | Queqiao-2
201
Wenchang Space Launch Site, People's Republic of China
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China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation
The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) is the main contractor for the Chinese space program. It is state-owned and has a number of subordinate entities which design, develop and manufacture a range of spacecraft, launch vehicles, strategic and tactical missile systems, and ground equipment. It was officially established in July 1999 as part of a Chinese government reform drive, having previously been one part of the former China Aerospace Corporation. Various incarnations of the program date back to 1956.
Queqiao-2
Queqiao-2 is a Chinese artificial satellite to serve as a communications relay for future Chinese lunar far side missions that cannot communicate directly with the Earth, beginning with the Chang'e 6 lunar sample return mission in 2024. It will operate from a Distant Retrograde Orbit (DRO) of the Moon. The launch also carries the Tiandu-1 & 2 small satellites testing cis-lunar space navigation and inter-satellite communication techniques for CNSA’s Deep Space Exploration Laboratory (DSEL).
Long March 8
Height 50.34 Meters
Max Stages 2
Mass To GTO 2800 kg
Liftoff Thrust 4800 kN
Diameter 3.35 Meters
Mass To LEO 8100 kg
Liftoff Mass 356 Tonnes
Launch Success 2
Consecutive Success 2
Maiden Flight 2020-12-22
Launch Failures 0
Updates
Cosmic_Penguin
2024-03-20T01:08:40+0000
Launch success.
SwGustav
2024-03-20T00:32:16+0000
Liftoff
Cosmic_Penguin
2024-03-18T07:16:58+0000
Tweaked T-0.
Cosmic_Penguin
2024-03-15T11:12:34+0000
Updated launch window per additional NOTAMs.
Cosmic_Penguin
2024-03-15T07:51:03+0000
Added tentative launch date and window per NOTAMs; Identity of launch with launch vehicle and payload combination uncertain.
Cosmic_Penguin
2023-10-02T11:18:52+0000
NET March 2024.
Cosmic_Penguin
2023-04-25T13:44:45+0000
Added launch.
Programs
Chinese Lunar Exploration Program
The Chinese Lunar Exploration Program also known as the Chang'e Project after the Chinese moon goddess Chang'e, is an ongoing series of robotic Moon missions by the China National Space Administration (CNSA). The program incorporates lunar orbiters, landers, rovers and sample return spacecraft, launched using Long March rockets.
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