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China poised to launch Tianzhou-3 cargo ship to replenish Tiangong space station

  • Tianzhou-3 will dock with the Tiangong space station to deliver fuel and supplies
  • The station’s first three astronauts will then leave in a return capsule, with three more expected to replace them in October, sources say

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The Long March-7 Y4 rocket is readied to carry the Tianzhou-3 cargo craft. Photo: Handout
China is set to launch a third cargo spaceship to dock at its space station to deliver fresh supplies and bring back three astronauts who have been there for almost three months, sources say.
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Two sources familiar with China’s manned space programme said the Tianzhou-3 cargo spaceship was scheduled to launch next Monday from the southern island of Hainan.
Tianzhou-3 is expected to dock with the Tiangong space station within 24 hours of launch to deliver fuel and supplies for three more astronauts who are set to be taken there by the Shenzhou-13 spaceship in October. The new trio are expected to stay in orbit for six months.

Assembly and testing of the spaceship and its carrier rocket Long March-7 Y4 at the Wenchang launch site had gone smoothly, the source said.

02:27

China sends astronauts on space mission to build Tiangong Space Station

China sends astronauts on space mission to build Tiangong Space Station
A second source in Beijing said that after Tianzhou-3’s arrival, the first three astronauts sent to the Tiangong station – Nie Haisheng, the commander, Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo – would next week leave in a return capsule, to land at the new Dongfeng landing site in northern China’s Inner Mongolia autonomous region.
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