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Research and development of the Tianzhou cargo spacecraft - EurekAlert

Cargo spacecraft is robotic spacecraft designed to support space station operation by transporting food, propellant and other supplies. Tianzhou cargo spacecraft (The abbreviation is TZ) is a Chinese automated cargo spacecraft developed by the China Academy of Space Technology, as part of China's manned space Station program. The China Academy of Space Technology began to design TZ in 2010. Its main tasks are transporting and storing supplies for the space station, storing and descending waste materials for the space station, controlled falling to a predetermined area; cooperating with the space station to control the orbit and attitude of the combined body; Supporting the development of space applications and technical tests adapted to the capabilities of cargo spacecraft. In a review paper recently published in Space: Science & Technology, Jianyu Lei, from China Academy of Space Technology, presented a detailed description about the design of Tianzhou Cargo Spacecraft including the structure, function, and key technology of subsystems. The development and flight missions were also demonstrated. A comparison of TZ with other cargo vehicles were made, which provides us a systematic understanding about TZ cargo spacecraft.

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