Tianwen-1 Mars orbital insertion, ESPI Asia NewSpace report, Space in the Chinese New Year Gala - Weekly News Round-Up Ep 20
Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup! Without further ado, the news update from the week of 8 - 14 Feb.
1) Tianwen-1 inserts itself successfully into Martian orbit
China’s Mars exploration spacecraft successfully inserted itself into Martian orbit by firing its main thrust engine (3000N) during approx. 15 mins, lowering its velocity sufficiently to be “captured” by the red planet’s gravitational field. Tianwen-1 has inserted itself in a highly elliptical orbit with a periapsis of 400 km and an orbital plane inclination of 10°. While we are still in the early stages of the mission, this is a historical moment for China, as it’s the first time it has inserted a spacecraft in a orbit beyond the Earth orbit, becoming the 6th country to do so after the US, Russia, Europe, India, and the UAE.
2) Publication of the ESPI Report “New Space in Asia”, including DFH (and GT!) contribution for the China Part
Detailed report published earlier this week about the large and growing “New Space” sector in Asia. While our personal favorite would clearly be the Chinese market, the report provides a great deep-dive into a number of other regional space industries, with every chapter written by an expert of their respective market. The report is highly recommended as a primer for understanding several of the world’s fastest-growing space industries.
3) Happy New Year of the Ox! + Chinese New Year Art of Social Media
China this week has also officially entered the year of the ox, according to its traditional lunar calendar. One event that was worth noting during this period: the traditional Chinese New Year gala, which is watched by almost every household on the night of CNY (interestingly while the TV is generally on with 春晚, people aren’t generally watching it with too much attention). During this new year gala, the spotlight was given to Chinese space during 3 whole minutes, during which the presentator invited the Chief designers of some of China’s most ambitious projects. When you watch the video you think a little bit about how important a space country China is becoming. And by observing the way the space part of the Gala was set up (music, content, …), you realize how strong the Chinese pride is for their latest achievements.
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