China rolls out rocket for Shenzhou-19 astronaut launch (video) (Image Credit: Space.com)
China’s next space station mission is almost ready for launch.
A Long March 2F rocket, topped with the Shenzhou 19 spacecraft, now sits on its pad at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, northwest China, ready for launch to the Tiangong space station.
The 203-foot-long (62 meters) rocket was transferred 0.93 miles (1.5 kilometers) by rail from the vertical integration building to the pad on Oct. 22, according to China’s human spaceflight agency (CMSA).
The subsequent pre-launch functional inspections and joint tests will be carried out as planned, and the launch is planned to be carried out in the near future, CMSA said in a statement.
Related: Chinese astronauts perform record-breaking spacewalk outside Tiangong space station (video)
Shenzhou 19’s launch s expected before the end of the month, but China typically only officially announces the time and date a day or two before launch. The identity of the three crew members will be revealed a day ahead of launch at a press conference at the Jiuquan spaceport. Livestreams of the launch will be made available closer to liftoff.
The crew will then launch for Tiangong to begin their six-month-long stay in space. There, they will be greeted aboard by the Shenzhou 18 crew—commander Ye Guangfu and crewmembers Li Cong and Li Guangsu—who are completing their own half-year stint in orbit.
Meanwhile, science activities have been continuing aboard the station. Ye, Li and Li conducted maintenance of the combustion science laboratory cabinet by replacing burners, vacuuming and exhausting and organizing related materials, CCTV reported. The crew also replaced samples in the fluid physics laboratory cabinet, which is used to conduct on-orbit microgravity experiments on kinetic and other processes, including the behavior of different fluid systems.
The astronauts are now just over one-third of the way through their six-month stay aboard Tiangong. They will be joined in orbit by the Shenzhou 19 crew around October or November. Ye and crew will then hand over the station to the incoming astronauts and prepare to return to Earth.
China plans to operate Tiangong for at least a decade.