Long March 5 Y7 Pre and Post-Launch
The first half of this post was originally published on Ko-fi on the 17th of February 2024.
The large fairing on the Long March 5 has returned as it prepares for its seventh flight. Not much is known about the launch at this time. China Manned Space Agency is believed to not be involved with this launch.
Due to this not being the 5B variant, this will likely be a geostationary orbit mission. A Yuanzheng-2 is also likely onboard to perform manoeuvers at geostationary altitude.
We can only predict the payload, however the last time this configuration was used it launched the Yaogan 41 optical remote-sensing satellite.
The Yaogan satellites are used to obtain data for land resources surveying, agricultural yield forecasting, environmental monitoring, and disaster prevention and relief.
The launch is currently expected to occur no earlier than 10:00 pm on the 23 of February.
The remainder of this post was originally published on Ko-fi on the 23rd of February 2024.
Last night in China a Long March 5 lifted off from the Wenchang Space Launch Site, for the rocket's seventh mission. The rocket was carrying what is believed to be TJS satellite No. 11 toward a geostationary transfer orbit.
The launch was reportedly a complete success with the spacecraft being placed in the correct orbit, the specifics have not yet been shared by the China National Space Administration. CCTV reported the success after the launch stating it lifted off as planned at 7:30 pm Beijing time on the 22nd of February.
This mission also flew the larger fairing again which led some to believe, including me, that a Yuanzheng-2 was onboard. It is unconfirmed at this time if a Yuanzheng-2 is onboard for performing manoeuvers at geostationary altitude.
The satellite is reportedly built by the China Academy of Space Technology and is tasked with testing multi-band high-speed space-based communication technologies.
This launch was also the ninth Long March rocket flight of the year and the five-hundred and ninth overall. Similarly to the Yaogan-41 mission, China Manned Space Agency was not involved with the mission. This is likely due to the mission being operated by the China National Space Administration at a 'military' level.
