Andrew Jones

Here we go. Zhuque-3 set for launch and booster recovery attempt between 0352-0609 UTC Saturday (Nov. 29) (~11 pm Eastern Friday, Nov. 28).

Shenzhou-22 docked with the forward port at Tiangong space station at 0750 UTC. The Shenzhou-21 astronauts have their lifeboat, and China has successfully dealt with its first major human spaceflight emergency situation. www.cmse.gov.cn/xwzx/202511/...

Liftoff

Event Horizon 😬

I suppose it's because they want dedicated sensors on low latitudes and want more data for a safe crewed landing. CE-7 is going to be polar, and I assume its orbit means it won't collect all the data needed in time, nor have the instruments cmsa wants data from.

China's human spaceflight agency states that the Shenzhou-22 logo resembles a bow and arrow to represent the readiness to respond to emergency.
www.cmse.gov.cn/xwzx/202511/...

How about the remote sensing satellite to support the crewed landing...

Indeed!

Hong Kong University plans to launch the "Moon Flash" lunar orbiter ~2028 to detect lunar impact flashes, being the brief optical flashes produced when micrometeoroids impact the Moon’s surface. Mission would be in collaboration with the mainland. content-static.cctvnews.cctv.com/snow-book/in...

Uncrewed launch of Shenzhou-22 is set for ~0410 UTC tomorrow, heading to Tiangong to provide a lifeboat for the Shenzhou-21 crew. An apparent mission patch posted on weibo also has this named as TGYJ-1, or Tiangong emergency response-1. Live streams expected close to liftoff.

A Long March 3B lifted off at 1055 UTC today from Xichang, successfully sending the TJS-21 experimental communications satellite into orbit. Launch 74 for China in 2025. mp.weixin.qq.com/s/UiTof3iYlE...

Honestly, no idea. Shijian is a very opaque (at best) series of satellites, and we'll have to look at activities in orbit to get any idea. Debris was just an inclusive thought on what "space environment" could entail, if taking that vague description at face value, & more thinking tracking than ADR

Well, it's triplets in 500-km, 51 degree inclined orbits for "space environment exploration and related technology verification." Could be tech‐demo for monitoring or debris, I suppose, if that description holds, or formation flying, rendezvous, remote sensing, etc, or loads of other things.

Yet another Chinese launch company emerges: FSTSpace. Plans its reusable Qitian-1 launcher, powered by 200-ton-class FFSC methalox engines. Claims a sub-scale thrust chamber hot fire in September.

A Long March 2C lifted off at 0401 UTC today from Jiuquan, carrying the Shijian-30 (01, 02 & 03) satellites into orbit. This was China's 73rd orbital launch attempt of the year. Final action for CZ-2C in 2025. www.calt.com/n689/c248972...

Shenzhou-22: launch of SZ-22 on a Long March 2F set for ~04:10 UTC Nov. 25 from Jiuquan, according to airspace closure notices. This will be uncrewed, carry cargo, but most importantly it's the lifeboat for the Shenzhou-21 crew aboard Tiangong.

*Chen Dong has now accumulated a Chinese record of 418 days in space.
*At 204 days (9 more than expected) the Shenzhou-20 mission is China's longest to date
*The four mice that launched on SZ-21 also returned to Earth today

*Shenzhou-20 crew returned to Earth as expected within reentry window
*They used their colleagues' SZ-21 spacecraft as SZ-20 return module window has minor crack, likely due to a debris impact
*Uncrewed Shenzhou-22 with cargo will be launched to Tiangong for SZ-21 astrosnauts

Live: Special coverage of Shenzhou-20 crew's return to Earth YouTube video by CGTN

Live coverage of the return starting soon: www.youtube.com/live/bSme1kH...

Shenzhou-20 crew coming home on the Shenzhou-21 spacecraft: SZ-21 undocked from Tiangong at 0314 UTC with astronauts Chen Dong, Chen Zhongrui and Wang Jie aboard. CMSEO revealed there's a Shenzhou-20 spacecraft's return capsule window glass developed a minor crack and thus unsafe

Shenzhou-20: 30-minute window opens in 10 hours. Hopefully we'll see a routine, safe reentry and landing for the three astronauts.

Well, they're moving beyond the render... the test module will be used for landing tech tests.

There's an airspace closure notice suggesting Shenzhou-20 will return to Earth between 0820-0850 UTC on Friday (Nov. 14). No official statement from China's human spaceflight agency yet.

Here's the full lack of clarity on the Shenzhou-20 situation from China's human spaceflight agency in English: english.news.cn/20251111/ff7...

The other thing to note is that Tiangong is operating well, SZ-20 crew are participating in experiments along with SZ-21 astronauts. Crew hand over usually sees the space station host 6 astros for 4-5 days, but we're now into day 11.

Amid this, CCTV has shown footage of activity at Jiuquan, though not showing what's stacked on CZ-2F. Rehearsals, or getting SZ-22 ready to fly? Whatever is happening: "All work is progressing steadily and orderly according to plan."

Update: "Shenzhou-20 crew's return mission is progressing smoothly," CMSEO says, without explicitly stating the plan. But "landing site is currently conducting comprehensive rehearsals for the Shenzhou-20 crew's return," suggesting SZ-20 is clear to land. www.cmse.gov.cn/xwzx/202511/...

Cosmoleap: The YQ-1A rocket has passed an overall program review, paving the way for testing and production.
mp.weixin.qq.com/s/A9WVvBZPAb...

New launch record for China: country made its 69th & 70th orbital launch attempts of 2025 in the last few hours, with a CZ-11 launch from the Yellow sea, carrying Shiyan-32 (01-03), & a CAS Space Lijian-1 from Jiuquan, carrying Chutian-2 (01+02). This surpasses 2024's 68 launches.

Things to look for include activity at Jiuquan, such as rollout of Shenzhou-22, which is already in state of near-readiness, while SZ-23 will also need to be prepared in the background for an emergency to cover SZ-21 crew. Tiangong should be able to host the 6 astros for a while.