Author Topic: CSS/Tiangong EVA-1 - 4 July 2021 (UTC) (Read 21138 times)

eeergo · « **on:** 06/23/2021 09:41 am »

Starting this thread since the momentous occasion of the first CSS EVA (only China's second overall) is apparently due in a few short days: https://forum.nasaspaceflight.com/index.php?topic=26876.msg2255707#msg2255707
https://twitter.com/Kaynouky/status/1407546219728154626
Has anyone found detailed objectives of this EVA, which I assume will generally focus on external outfitting of Tianhe from its post-launch to in-space configuration?

SciNews · « **Reply #1 on:** 06/23/2021 04:27 pm »

23 June 2021 "The astronauts will start extravehicular activities in 10 days or so."
Improvements to the EVA spacesuit compared to the previous one.

gemmy0I · « **Reply #2 on:** 06/23/2021 07:48 pm »

Is it known how the latest generation of Chinese Feitian suits compares to the latest Russian Orlan-MKS suits currently used on the ISS?

According to Wikipedia (citing a Xinhua article, but the original article doesn't actually contain this detail so I'm not sure where Wikipedia's getting it), the original Feitian used on Shenzhou-7 was "modelled after" the Orlan-M, and was "designed for spacewalks of up to seven hours". I suspect Wikipedia's information is shaky because the seven-hour claim seems to have been contradicted by official statements from Nie Haisheng in the video posted above (edit: removed link to prevent embedding) by SciNews:

Quote from: Nie Haisheng, via subtitles of SciNews video

The biggest change is the prolonged time span it can support our working out of the spacecraft. The time will be increased from the previous four hours to seven or eight hours.

Secondly, the joints of the suit have been improved with better mobility. Then some other electronic devices have been added to the suit, including video cameras, which may be more helpful for us to complete the mission.

Based on Nie's statements, the original Feitian worn by Zhai Zhigang on Shenzhou-7 was evidently not an equal to the Orlan-M worn by Liu Boming on the same mission - since Orlan-M is known to be good for 7-8+ hour spacewalks (as seen at ISS). However, his description of the new Feitian that will be used at CSS sounds an awful lot like the improvements made in the last few generations of Orlan: better mobility, computerization, etc.

Visually, the main difference between the CSS Feitian and Orlan-MKS is that the Feitian has the same "clean white" color as American suits, versus the off-white/cream color that has traditionally been used for Russian space suits. This may be merely a cosmetic change, as the Tianhe module made the same color choices relative to Zvezda, Nauka, etc. (The off-white was all the rage in the '70s and '80s - heck, the interior of the Starship Enterprise had it in the Star Trek movies of that era, as did popular electronics like the IBM PC - but it's kind of dated now.

)

But, if Shenzhou and Tianhe have taught us anything, it's not to judge a spacecraft by its cover: despite outer similarities to Russian-heritage designs, they evidently incorporate some very thorough upgrades. So I'm curious how closely Feitian suit development has paralleled that of the Orlan line. Are Russia and China continuing to actively collaborate on spacesuit designs, or has China taken its own parallel path forward from the starting point of the original Feitian "modeled after" the Orlan-M suits and designs they purchased decades ago?

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #3 on:** 07/03/2021 12:15 am »

https://twitter.com/AJ_FI/status/1410940031385153538

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #4 on:** 07/04/2021 01:55 am »

The spacewalk will start in a few minutes.
tinyurl.com/3x96x25k

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #5 on:** 07/04/2021 02:02 am »

The start time will be at 02:00 UTC, the transmission has already started.

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #6 on:** 07/04/2021 02:03 am »

CCTV13 live: https://tv.cctv.com/live/cctv13/

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #7 on:** 07/04/2021 02:19 am »

CGTN will cover in English

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #8 on:** 07/04/2021 02:36 am »

they are already preparing to leave

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #9 on:** 07/04/2021 02:57 am »

Tang Hongbo and Liu bombing would be the two taikonauts who are on the spacewalk, while Nie Haisheng is controlling the robotic arm.

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #10 on:** 07/04/2021 03:03 am »

Steven Pietrobon · « **Reply #11 on:** 07/04/2021 03:27 am »

At the hatch. I'm not sure if they are closing or opening it.

Steven Pietrobon · « **Reply #12 on:** 07/04/2021 03:29 am »

Coming out of the hatch.

Steven Pietrobon · « **Reply #13 on:** 07/04/2021 03:30 am »

Red stripes and blue stripes to indicate the two taikonauts.

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #14 on:** 07/04/2021 03:30 am »

(Now it is shown in the broadcast that the two taikonauts are leaving the Station, but actually this has already happened and it is a repetition of what happened, the two taikonauts are still on the spacewalk.)

Steven Pietrobon · « **Reply #15 on:** 07/04/2021 03:34 am »

Getting into the foot restraint on the end of the arm.

Steven Pietrobon · « **Reply #16 on:** 07/04/2021 03:59 am »

Looks like coverage has ended, although I assume the taikonauts are still on their spacewalk.

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #17 on:** 07/04/2021 04:11 am »

CNSA does not yet have 24-hour live transmission from [Tianhe], but on July 6 they will launch the Tianlian 1-05 satellite that will serve to transmit data from [Tianhe] to the ground and thus reduce the times in which they do not receive data.

That is why at the beginning of the broadcast, live video transmission with the taikonatuas outside of [Tianhe], but then they placed the replay and the commentary as if it were live.

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #18 on:** 07/04/2021 04:33 am »

CASC says that at 00:11 UTC astronaut Liu Boming successfully opened the hatch of the central Tianhe module and at 03:02 UTC astronauts Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo exited the Thiane module to begin their spacewalk.
https://weibo.com/5386897742/Kn9Zf6Xyj?ssl_rnd=1625372578.603&type=comment#_rnd1625372596860

zubenelgenubi · « **Reply #19 on:** 07/04/2021 05:02 am »

Quote from: Conexion Espacial on 07/04/2021 04:33 am

CASC says that at 00:11 UTC astronaut Liu Boming successfully opened the hatch of the central Tianhe module and at 03:02 UTC astronauts Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo exited the [Tianhe] module to begin their spacewalk.
https://weibo.com/5386897742/Kn9Zf6Xyj?ssl_rnd=1625372578.603&type=comment#_rnd1625372596860

I wonder why the 2 hour, 51 minute gap between hatch open and exit?
Were there engineering tests to perform in vacuum before exiting?

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #20 on:** 07/04/2021 05:40 am »

CORRECTION: The time indicated as 03:02 UTC, no correspondence to the time the two taikonauts left [Tianhe], but correspondence to the time they installed the platform.

zubenegenubi: edit/spelling

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #21 on:** 07/04/2021 06:03 am »

CCTV13 and CGTN have started their space program.

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #22 on:** 07/04/2021 06:12 am »

other images from the spacewalk which are being broadcast now.

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #23 on:** 07/04/2021 06:16 am »

according to a friend tells me, this is a repetition too and the two taikonatutas are already inside the [Tianhe] module.

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #24 on:** 07/04/2021 06:26 am »

indeed, it has just been seen from the control room that the two taikonatuas are already inside the station.

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #25 on:** 07/04/2021 06:44 am »

The Tianlian data coverage has a gap when Tianhe is above South America. At 06 July a new Tianlian satellite will launch to space.

Quote from: Conexion Espacial on 07/04/2021 04:11 am

CNSA does not yet have 24-hour live transmission from Thiane, but on July 6 they will launch the Tianlian 1-05 satellite that will serve to transmit data from Thiane to the ground and thus reduce the times in which they do not receive data.

That is why at the beginning of the broadcast, live video transmission with the taikonatuas outside of thian, but then they placed the replay and the commentary as if it were live.

slobber91 · « **Reply #26 on:** 07/04/2021 07:01 am »

Observed CSS/Tiangong pass over Los Angeles this evening at ~21:16 PDT / 04:16 GMT while EVA was apparently underway. Saw at least one, very noticeable, instantaneous increase in brightness when station was almost directly overhead, likely glint off of solar panels or possibly off of EVA-related equipment.

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #27 on:** 07/04/2021 07:10 am »

State media say the the duration of this EVA is about 7 hours.

https://weibo.com/cctvxinwen?ssl_rnd=1621399169.7603&is_all=1

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #28 on:** 07/04/2021 07:26 am »

It is confirmed that the second spacewalk in China and the first in the new Chinese space station had a duration of 6 hours and 46 minutes (00:11-06:57 UTC), this is a big difference compared to the first which lasted 20 minutes.

Conexion Espacial · « **Reply #29 on:** 07/04/2021 07:34 am »

Liu Ming and Tang Hongbo are already retiring their EVA suits.

centaurinasa · « **Reply #30 on:** 07/04/2021 08:07 am »

centaurinasa · « **Reply #31 on:** 07/04/2021 08:11 am »

https://twitter.com/AJ_FI/status/1411592090581090308
https://twitter.com/AJ_FI/status/1411598255071371264

centaurinasa · « **Reply #32 on:** 07/04/2021 08:17 am »

http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2021-07/04/c_1310042340.htm

Liss · « **Reply #33 on:** 07/04/2021 08:21 am »

The EVA has been finished at 06:57 UTC.

centaurinasa · « **Reply #34 on:** 07/04/2021 08:24 am »

https://twitter.com/RevesdEspace/status/1411567942924443651

"Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo made a spacewalk to the Chinese space station on Sunday.
The airlock was opened at 00:11 UTC.
Liu Boming's first sentence at the exit: Wow, it's too beautiful outside !"

centaurinasa · « **Reply #35 on:** 07/04/2021 08:26 am »

Seems like the duration of this EVA is 6 hours 46 minutes. (but depending on how the chinese determine the start and end of their EVA)
Liu Boming with red stripes, Tang Hongbo with blue stripes.
During the EVA, Liu was on the robotic arm manipulated by Nie Haisheng who remained inside Tianhe.
In addition to testing the new space suits and the robotic arm, the objective was to set up supports ,install a panoramic camera (that was folded during the launch) and and tested an emergency return to the airlock.

SciNews · « **Reply #36 on:** 07/04/2021 12:52 pm »

The first extravehicular activity on the China Space Station

ace5 · « **Reply #37 on:** 07/04/2021 01:40 pm »

The mission control center seems to be named "Shuguang" - if I heard correctly from the narrator - which is meaningful.

Stan Black · « **Reply #38 on:** 07/04/2021 10:02 pm »

So one difference to the way Russians do E.V.A., is that the individual inside Tianhe did not have access to Shenzhou?

eeergo · « **Reply #39 on:** 07/05/2021 08:07 am »

Quote from: ace5 on 07/04/2021 01:40 pm

The mission control center seems to be named "Shuguang" - if I heard correctly from the narrator - which is meaningful.

What's the meaning, for non-Chinese speakers?

ace5 · « **Reply #40 on:** 07/05/2021 01:33 pm »

Quote from: eeergo on 07/05/2021 08:07 am

Quote from: ace5 on 07/04/2021 01:40 pm
The mission control center seems to be named "Shuguang" - if I heard correctly from the narrator - which is meaningful.

What's the meaning, for non-Chinese speakers?

"In April 1971, the Chinese political leadership officially approved the human spaceflight plan (Project 714), including the development of a two-man space capsule (Shuguang 1) and the training of astronauts, with an unmanned flight test in 1972 followed by a manned mission in 1973."

newfrontiers · « **Reply #41 on:** 07/06/2021 03:10 pm »

4K version

newfrontiers · « **Reply #42 on:** 07/06/2021 03:12 pm »

4K without narration