China tested a new rocket-booster parachute system during a recent launch from the southwest of the country, the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation said on Monday.

The system was tested on June 3 when the meteorological satellite Fengyun-4B was sent into a geostationary orbit via a Long March-3B carrier rocket from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan province.

Developed by an institute under the corporation, a 300-square-meter parachute helped the rocket boosters to land in a predetermined location, narrowing the range of the landing area by 70 percent.

Unlike many countries' launch pads, which are typically located along coastlines, China's major launch sites are deep inland, which means the heavy boosters, once separated from the rockets, fly directly over densely populated areas. Therefore, after liftoff, rocket boosters and other debris threaten the safety of local communities as they fall back to the ground.

Preventing rocket boosters from landing unpredictably, in areas with human activity, has become an urgent task of Chinese scientists, bearing in mind the several space launches that the country plans for this year.

According to Zhang Yipu, a senior Long March-3 rocket designer, the new parachute system can adjust the posture and reduce the speed of falling boosters when en route to the ground, finally leading them to a targeted area.

The system will provide an efficient and low-cost recovery system to make rocket debris recovery more precise and controllable, said Teng Haishan, technical lead of the parachute project.

Source: Xinhua News Agency

Related Links
China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation
Rocket Science News at Space-Travel.Com

Tweet

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The Space Media Network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceMediaNetwork Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceMediaNetwork Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only

PLD Space receives ESA contract to study reusing MIURA 5 boosters
London UK (SPX) May 28, 2021
The new project by PLD Space and the European Space Agency (ESA), known as Liquid Propulsion Stage Recovery 2 (LPSR 2), is a continuation of the previous contract awarded by ESA to PLD Space in 2017. This contract is part of ESA's Future Launchers Programme and focuses on the study of re-entry trajectories and configurations for the safe descent of stage one of MIURA 5, which will be launched from Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana. The euro 1M in financial support from ESA will enable PLD to st ... read more