Shenzhou 21

The mission

Tenth crewed flight to the Chinese space station.

Type

Human exploration

Destination

Low Earth orbit

Program

Tiangong space station

The Tiangong space station is a space station placed in Low Earth orbit between 340 and 450 km above the surface.

The rocket

The Long March 2F is a Chinese orbital carrier rocket, part of the Long March 2 rocket family. Designed to launch the crewed Shenzhou spacecraft, the Long March 2F is a human-rated two-stage version of the Long March 2E rocket, which in turn was based on the Long March 2C launch vehicle. It is launched from complex SLS at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. The Long March 2F/G version includes longer boosters for increased lift capability, among other improvements.

Height

62 m

Built by

China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation

First flew

October 31, 2011

Lifts to low Earth orbit

8,399 kg

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Diameter

3.4 m

Mass at liftoff

464 t

Stages

2

22 flights, 22 of them successful.

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The operator

China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation

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.

Sector

Government

Based in

China

Founded

1999

Run by

Lei Fanpei, Chairman & President

612 launches so far, 596 of them successful. The last 3 in a row went to plan.

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The launch site

It went up from Launch Area 91 (SLS-1 / 921) at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, China.

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