The Chinese manned aerospace agency (CMSA) said on February 13 that the country is planning to launch its first cargo spacecraft with Y2-7 Y2 boosters in April.
This vessel can also connect to Thien Cung-2 station and refuel.
The reporter quoted the CMSA as saying that the cargo ship, named Thien Chu-1 on Feb. 5, left Tianjin port city in northern China, and on February 13 came to the Security Center. Wen Xuong in Hainan Province to conduct assembly and testing.
Thien Chu-1 has a takeoff weight of 13 tons, carries up to 6 tons of cargo and can stay in space for 3 months.
The vessel can also connect to Thien Cung-2 station and refuel to conduct other tests.
According to CMSA, Truong Chinh-7 Y2 boosters are expected to arrive at Van Xuong Satellite Launch Center in March 2017.
The launch of Thien Chu-1 will be an important step for China in the construction of the space station before 2020 by the cargo spacecraft designed to transport necessities to astronauts working on this station. .
