Tianzhou 6 (Chinese: 天舟六号) was the sixth mission of the Tianzhou-class uncrewed cargo spacecraft, and the fifth resupply mission to the Tiangong Space Station. Like previous Tianzhou missions, the spacecraft was launched from the Wenchang Satellite Launch CenterinHainan, China on a Long March 7 rocket.[2] This was the first mission of the operation phase of Tiangong.[3] It was launched on 10 May 2023 at 13:22 UTC,[4] and docked to the Tiangong Space Station a few hours later.[5][6]
ATianzhou 3D model
| |
| Mission type | Tiangong space station resupply |
|---|---|
| Operator | CNSA |
| COSPAR ID | 2023-063A  |
| SATCAT no. | 56446 |
| Website | www |
| Mission duration | 253 days, 23 hours and 15 minutes |
| Spacecraft properties | |
| Spacecraft | Tianzhou-6 |
| Spacecraft type | Tianzhou |
| Manufacturer | China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation |
| Launch mass | 13,500 kg (29,800 lb) |
| Payload mass | 7,400 kg (16,300 lb) |
| Dimensions | 10.6 m × 3.35 m (34.8 ft × 11.0 ft) |
| Power | 2 |
| Expedition | |
| Space station | Tiangong space station |
| Start of mission | |
| Launch date | 10 May 2023, 13:22 UTC[1] |
| Rocket | Long March 7 |
| Launch site | Wenchang Satellite Launch Center, LC-2 |
| Contractor | China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology |
| End of mission | |
| Disposal | Deorbited |
| Decay date | 19 January 2024, 12:37 UTC |
| Orbital parameters | |
| Reference system | Geocentric orbit |
| Regime | Low Earth orbit |
| Inclination | 41.5° |
| Docking with Tiangong space station | |
| Docking port | Tianhe Aft port |
| Docking date | 10 May 2023, 21:16 UTC |
| Undocking date | 12 January 2024, 08:02 UTC |
| Time docked | 246 days, 10 hours and 46 minutes |
On 12 March 2023, CMSA announced that Tianzhou 6 has completed manufacturing, and was delivered to Wenchang.[7][8]
On 13 April 2023, Long March 7 Y7, the launch vehicle for this mission, arrived at Wenchang Space Launch Site. It started to conduct stacking and tests with the already arrived Tianzhou 6.[9]
On 7 May 2023, Long March 7 Y7 and Tianzhou 6 arrived vertically at the launch pad.[10]
On 10 May 2023 at 13:22:51.405 UTC, it was successfully launched from Wenchang.[11] It docked to the aft port of the Tiangong Space Station less than 8 hours later.[6]
Tianzhou 6 was undocked on 12 January 2024 to make way for Tianzhou 7 cargo ship, and deorbited by burning up in the Earth's atmosphere about a week later.
The cargo capacity of Tianzhou 6 has been increased by 20%, allowing to it carry payloads of up to 7.4 tonnes.[12][13][11] Tianzhou 6 has the largest capacity in the Tianzhou series and is the largest active cargo supply spacecraft in terms of capacity.[14][15][16]
Starting from this mission, the launch frequency of Tianzhou cargo spacecraft will be adjusted from two ships per year to three ships every two years.[17]
Tianzhou-6 carried 1750 kg of fuel, of which 700 kg is for resupplying the space station. It delivered more than 7 tons of pressurized cargo, including scientific payloads for researching about lidar and supercritical flow.[18] It also brought 70 kg of fresh fruit for the Shenzhou 15 and 16's crew.[1]
Spaceflight
