China Aerospace Science and Technology CorporationLong March 2F/GLaunch Area 91 (SLS-1 / 921), Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China
Shenzhou-8 & Shenzhou-8-GC
Launched
October 31, 2011
Image: Xinhua
Summary
Shenzhou-8 & Shenzhou-8-GC launched on a China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation Long March 2F/G from Launch Area 91 (SLS-1 / 921), Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China on October 31, 2011. It was China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation's 95th launch, 13th this year and humanity's 5,172nd orbital launch attempt. It was the 2nd Long March 2F/G flight. The payload was bound for low Earth orbit (LEO). Shenzhou 8, one of 4 catalogued objects, reached a 269 × 322 km orbit inclined 42.8°. The spacecraft was Shenzhou 8 (8). 4 objects from this launch are catalogued, one of them a payload.
- Watch
- No webcast on record.
- Booster
- No booster details on record.
- Mission
- Human Exploration · Low Earth Orbit (LEO)
- Milestone
- 2nd Long March 2F/G flightChina Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation's 95th launch13th this yearhumanity's 5,172nd orbital launch attempt66th orbital launch attempt this year
Spacecraft
Shenzhou 8 (8)
The Shenzhou 8 spacecraft was automatically docked with the Tiangong-1 space module (launched on 29 September 2011) on November 3 and again on November 14, 2011. This unmanned docking—China's first—was followed in 2012 with the manned Shenzhou 9 mission, which performed a manned docking (also China's first) with the Tiangong-1 module.
- Destination: Tiangong-1
- Mission length: 16 days
- Docked November 2, 2011 at Tiangong-1 forward
- Docked November 14, 2011 at Tiangong-1 forward
The Shenzhou 8 spacecraft landed in the Dorbnod Banner in Inner Mongolia, China.
Flight preview
Orbit: as tracked
Shenzhou 8 · NORAD 37859 · 2011-063 · Space-Track · tracking 1 of 4 objects
Show the numbers for orbit elements
- Object
- OBJECT A
- Object ID
- 2011-063A
- Epoch
- 2011-11-01 14:38:08 UTC
- Mean motion
- 15.95044558 rev/day
- Eccentricity
- 0.003979
- Inclination
- 42.7851°
- Ascending node
- 355.6112°
- Arg. of perigee
- 138.4837°
- Mean anomaly
- 351.9931°
- Element set
- 999
- Rev at epoch
- 10
- B*
- 0
Perigee, apogee and period are Kepler figures from the catalogued mean elements, not a propagated state. Published orbit: LEO.
Catalogued objects
4 catalogued: 1 payload, 1 rocket stage, 2 components
- Shenzhou 8 · NORAD 37859 · docked November 2, 2011
CZ-2F Y8 Stage 2 · re-entered November 8, 2011
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
This is the first docking mission for China's Shenzhou program. Being the first spacecraft to visit the Tiangong-1 space station, it was launched without crew to demonstrate spacecraft rendezvous and docking techniques. The spacecraft docked automatically to the station on 2 November 2011. A second undocking and re-docking to test accuracy and reliability of equipment and sensors in a bright environment was performed on 14 November 2011. Shenzhou 8 undocked on 17 November 2011 and landed safely back on Earth the same day.
Pad
Launch Area 91 (SLS-1 / 921), Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China
9th launch from Launch Area 91 (SLS-1 / 921), 2nd this year · 56th from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China
29 launches from this pad · 299 from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China
32 days after the previous launch from this pad
All launches from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of ChinaOpen in maps
Questions
When did Shenzhou-8 & Shenzhou-8-GC launch?
Shenzhou-8 & Shenzhou-8-GC launched on October 31, 2011. The time is known to the hour, not the minute.
Where can I watch Shenzhou-8 & Shenzhou-8-GC?
No webcast is on record for this launch.
What rocket launched Shenzhou-8 & Shenzhou-8-GC?
Long March 2F/G, flown by China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. Long March 2F/G spec sheet
Where did Shenzhou-8 & Shenzhou-8-GC launch from?
Launch Area 91 (SLS-1 / 921), Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China.
What orbit did Shenzhou-8 & Shenzhou-8-GC reach?
Shenzhou 8, one of 4 catalogued objects, reached a 269 × 322 km orbit inclined 42.8°.
Which program is Shenzhou-8 & Shenzhou-8-GC part of?
Shenzhou. About Shenzhou