Long March 3B | Shijian 21
Launch Successful
L - -- : -- : -- : --
Launch Window
Oct. 24, 2021, 1:15 a.m. - Oct. 24, 2021, 1:45 a.m.
Oct. 24, 2021, 1:15 a.m. - Oct. 24, 2021, 1:45 a.m.
Chinese payload launching on trajectory consistent with geostationary transfer target orbit, official purpose declared as "validation of on orbit space debris reduction technologies".
Launch success.
Added launch per NOTAMs. Payload identity not known and the identity of rocket is uncertain.
The Long March 3B / E (G2) (CZ-3B / E) is one of the most successful medium-range launchers and the strongest variant of the CZ-3 series. It was specially developed for the transport of heavy communications satellites into a geostationary transfer orbit. The additional designation "E" stands for a higher payload fairing, stretched boosters and extended fuel tanks at the first stage, over the CZ-3B.
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.
INFO WIKI
China’s Shijian-21 space debris mitigation satellite has docked with a defunct Chinese satellite to drastically alter its geostationary orbit, demonstrating capabilities only previously exhibited by the United States.
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