Tao Travels丨Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center Tour

At 9:22 this morning, the rocket carrying the Shenzhou 12 manned spacecraft was successfully launched into the predetermined orbit at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, successfully sending the three astronauts Nie Haisheng, Liu Boming, and Tang Hongbo into space~

While watching the live broadcast in the morning, I chatted with Maodao and 33. The scene before the rocket launch was so familiar. I remembered that day when I visited the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Base up close and listened to the popular science introduced by the docent lady, I felt even more excited.

Last National Day we went to visit the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. Because we were on a journey to see the Populus euphratica forest, we started from Ejina. Before we went, we still had a question: Do we have to drive all the way to Jiuquan? It turns out that the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center is at the junction of Jiuquan and Ejina Banner, and it belongs to Ejina Banner in terms of geographical division.

When they hear the words Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, many people first think that this is a place that appears on TV. The picture in their mind is the live broadcast of the satellite launch countdown and ignition, and the rocket ascending to the sky. I was the same before going there. Such.

Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, also called Dongfeng Space City, is a small city located deep in the desolate Badain Jaran Desert. At noon, we set off from Juyanhai and drove on the Gobi Desert for about three hours before arriving at the Satellite Launch Center. Area 10.

It is said that the Space City does not accept individual visits. We were participating in a Populus euphratica forest tour group organized by the Inner Mongolia Hohhot Railway Bureau. We need to apply in advance to come in as a group to visit.

Because it is a military-controlled area, when entering the base, we must first pass through the checkpoint. At the checkpoint, each of our IDs were collected. After about an hour, there were about 50 people in our car. After the inspection, the base’s tour guide got on the bus and started our trip to the Jiuquan Launch Center.

As our car drove through the base, we could feel that the entire aerospace city was like an ordinary small town, with regular buildings and tall poplar trees on both sides of the road. I found a drainage pipe under the roots of the poplar tree. It is said that fresh water needs to be transported directly to the roots of the poplar tree through water pipes here every day. Because this is a saline-alkali land, it is difficult for poplar trees to grow. If fresh water is not supplied to him, these trees will easily wither.

We also saw the iconic sculpture of two bombs and one star on the car.

The road names here are very interesting, such as Aerospace Avenue, Dongfeng Road, Changzheng Road, etc.

The tour guide sister introduced to us that there are cinemas, vegetable markets, kindergartens, primary schools, middle schools, and gymnasiums in the base, just like an ordinary small town.

There are more than 20,000 scientific researchers, astronauts and their families living in the space city. They usually grow vegetables, raise chickens and sheep, and live a life of independence and safety.

The tour guide said that she was originally engaged in the tourism industry and lived in Beijing. Later, when her children went to school, she followed her husband to the Aerospace City. The children received a good education here, but they were stricter when they wanted to leave the small town for safety reasons. , subject to review.

We can't help but stand in awe. Generations of outstanding scientific researchers, astronauts and their families have given up their luxurious city life to devote their light and heat to our country's aerospace industry in such a small border town.

Why build the base in such a deserted place?

The commentator sister introduced that because space launches are very dangerous and may cause harm to people's lives and production, space launches, especially for manned spaceflight, may face risks before launch and during the ascent stage of launch. It is a situation of emergency escape, so the flatter and wider the terrain, the more advantageous it is. Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center is such an ideal place.

We came to the vicinity of the launch tower and felt even more excited!

Normally you can only see the transmitting tower right in front of you on TV!

As the car was driving, the young lady said, "The road we are taking now is the only way for astronauts to go on expeditions. It goes directly to the launch tower through here. Everyone suddenly felt excited."

I saw the launch tower. The weather was really good that day!

Everyone took some photos and then walked to the foot of the transmission tower to visit.

The young lady pointed to the large pool under the transmitting tower and asked us

What is the use of this big pool?

When the rocket is launched, a large water reservoir is built under the launch pad, with dozens of faucets spraying into the middle, and the water begins to be stored when the countdown is tens of seconds, because a large amount of heat will be generated at the moment of the rocket launch, which is enough to melt Steel.

The rocket is fixed by the launcher. The launcher is also made of steel. In order to protect the launcher, a pool is built at the bottom of the launcher to cool the launcher and reduce the threat to the launcher during launch!

It can be said that we are very lucky to be able to visit up close today, because if there is a launch mission, the rocket will stop at the launch pad 15 days in advance, and basically there will be no people within a radius of 1km Getting closer.

Fortunately, in 9 moon twenty one A rocket launch has just been completed. 8 It was not open at the beginning of the month, but I checked later and found that the satellite that had just been launched was Ocean 2. Before August, the base was closed due to the epidemic, so we were lucky to visit the launch pad during the National Day.

How did the rocket come here?

The young lady pointed to a tall building in the distance and said that the rocket was assembled there, transported by truck, and then installed on the launch tower. Inside that building was a large empty assembly workshop.

The commentator asked us questions:

How long does it take from launch to arrival in space?

The first time Yang Liwei flew into the sky, it took less than ten minutes, which can be said to be very fast. According to the young lady’s metaphor, the first manned aviation was like a tractor going down a dirt slope and it could easily overturn.

After she finished speaking, we all laughed. This metaphor was too vivid.

But with the continuous advancement of technology, astronauts feel like sitting in a luxury car when flying. It is very stable and safe.

The young lady went on to say that it was not easy for an astronaut to fly into space for the first time, because it was the first time for our country. He was already prepared to sacrifice. After flying into space, it was said that he had a brief coma. At that time, everyone was worried We sweated a lot, but later, when we saw him moving in the screen, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

We were very touched when we heard this. The road to space is really not easy...

The lady mentioned that the selection and training of astronauts is very strict. Due to the special environment of manned spaceflight, the arduous tasks, and the high risk, astronauts must not only learn the design principles of rockets and spacecrafts, flight dynamics, and meteorology , astronomy, communications, equipment testing, aerospace medicine, etc.

You also need to be familiar with the structure and composition of the spacecraft, the working principles and modes of each system of the spacecraft, and even master the status of important components and individual machines.

Finally, they have to train on the same training simulator as the real spacecraft for three to five years. This process is interspersed with physical training, first aid and training in different environments.

What is the height and weight of the astronaut?

The standard height of China's first batch of astronauts is about 1.70 meters and their weight is about 65 kilograms. The young lady also jokingly said that if an astronaut gained one pound, the country would have to spend an extra 100,000 yuan.

On the way back from the visit, there was endless desert again. When we returned to the town, we couldn't calm down for a long time. This shocking feeling is really worth remembering. As I write this article today, even though it has been half a year, I still feel... The memory is still fresh.

If you have a chance in the future, friends, you can really go and see it in person, it will be an unforgettable experience! In the middle of writing this article, I watched the live broadcast of the "Space Needle" docking between the Shenzhou 12 and the Tianhe core module.

From the berthing point 200 meters apart to getting closer bit by bit, the docking was successful with almost zero error for such a huge behemoth! Today's technology is so powerful. You can see so clearly and it feels like you are on the scene. The cross star in the picture below should be aimed at the docking.

Live broadcast from different perspectives

biu~The docking was successful!

I boldly imagine that we can see human space travel in my lifetime!

Traveling in the vastness, chasing dreams for nine days! Tribute to China Aerospace! wish all the best! The space hero completed all the work and returned safely! 🇨🇳