All articles tagged with #shenzhou 15
Researchers show that existing earthquake seismometers can detect shock waves from reentering space debris, enabling near real-time tracking of its path and potential landing sites; using 127 seismometers across southern California to map China's Shenzhou-15 module's descent (Mach 25–30) they estimated speed, altitude, and breakup points—information that can complement radar predictions and speed debris recovery to reduce hazards.
Mysterious "space debris" lighting up California's sky was identified as the orbital module of China’s Shenzhou 15 spacecraft re-entering the Earth’s atmosphere, following SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket launch. The Aerospace Corporation used tracking data to reveal the debris's identity, which caused a spectacular light show visible across Southern California. Despite concerns, the debris was not a result of the Falcon 9 launch failure, and it serves as a reminder of the increasing presence of satellites and rocket debris in Earth's orbit.
A large piece of Chinese space debris, the orbital module of China's Shenzhou 15 spacecraft, created a spectacular fireball as it fell to Earth over Southern California, witnessed by observers from Sacramento to San Diego. The 3,300-pound module had been in space since November 2022 and was not designed for safe reentry. This event follows previous uncontrolled crashes of Chinese space debris, drawing criticism from the space community for being potentially dangerous and irresponsible.
Methalox rockets Vulcan, ZhuQue-2, and Starship are approaching launch; Canada's wildfires are being studied from space using weather observation satellites; the James Webb Space Telescope's (JWST) advanced extragalactic survey data was officially released; Firefly Aerospace has acquired Spaceflight Inc.; and the Shenzhou-15 crew successfully returned to Earth from the Tiangong Space Station.
China's Shenzhou 15 astronauts, Fei Junlong, Deng Qingming, and Zhang Lu, are set to return to Earth after spending half a year aboard the Tiangong space station. The crew will return home on Sunday (June 4) Beijing time. The Shenzhou 15 trio welcomed the incoming Shenzhou 16 crew to Tiangong on Monday (May 29), and on Friday (June 2) all six astronauts participated in a ceremony to hand over control of the space station to the newcomers. The return capsule will touch down within the Dongfeng landing site in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, close to the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, from which the crew launched six months ago.