The new generation launchers in China: Long March 5 and 7
- Paper number
IAC-17,D2,1,9,x39345
- Year
2017
- Abstract
The need for the development of new generation arose due to a shift in launch requirements to medium and heavy-weight payloads to China’s upcoming space missions, such as China space station, regular flights of crew, cargo vehicles and lunar exploration. The Chinese past launchers were on the lower end of the required lift-class and employed highly toxic propellant combinations, not ideal for regular missions. The goal of the new line of launch vehicle is to establish a safe, reliable, flexible and economical space launch architecture. Instead of highly toxic propellants, the new series, consisting of the Long March 5 and 7, uses kerosene, liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen, making it more environmental friendly and less expensive. The new launchers use modular systems and common components across the different rockets as a cost-saving and simplification measure, allowing a quick build-up of heritage and permitting a streamlined production of launch vehicles to support an ever-growing number of missions. The Long March 5 and 7 rocket launched their maiden flight in 2016 from the coastal Wenchang Space Launch Center in southern Hainan Province, capable of delivering a payload of 13.5 and 25 tons to low Earth orbit respectively. The two types of launch vehicle will be used in China's missions to build its Earth-orbiting space station and will also allow the country to conduct lunar and planetary un-crewed explorations expected to follow in the next five years or so. Details are presented in this paper.
- Abstract document
- Manuscript document
(absent)