On September 5, 2023, under the organization and command of the Sea Launch Team of Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, Galactic Energy successfully completed the launch mission of Ceres 1 Sea Launch (Remote 1) Launch Vehicle (mission code: The Little Mermaid) in Haiyang, Shandong Province and the nearby waters, and successfully delivered the 21st to 24th stars of the Tianqi Constellation to the predefined orbit of 800km.
Satellites 21 to 24 of the Apocalypse Constellation are low-orbit data acquisition satellites developed by Beijing Guodian Hi-Tech Science and Technology Company Limited, and are part of the Apocalypse Constellation. The constellation is planned to be deployed and operated in 2024, and is a "low-orbit satellite Internet of Things constellation" consisting of 38 satellites and a number of ground stations, which can provide global, quasi-real-time low-orbit satellite Internet of Things data services for users in Internet of Things-related industries and national strategies such as "civil-military integration", and build a world-class network for the Internet of Things and the Internet of Things. It can provide global coverage and quasi-real-time low-orbit satellite IOT data services for IOT-related industry users and national strategies such as "civil-military integration", build an integrated low-orbit satellite IOT ecosystem of heaven and earth, and be widely used in "smart city", "smart ocean", fishing vessel communication and emergency communication, ecological environment monitoring, buoys, tower detection, roadbed slope detection and military IOT and battlefield situational awareness. Internet of Things, battlefield situational awareness and other application scenarios. Since the launch and operation of the first satellite in 2018, Guodian Hi-Tech has successfully deployed and operated 21 Tianqi LEO IoT satellites. The launch of the 21~24 stars of the Tianqi constellation has the following highlights:
1, with a wide range of orbital maneuverability
Tianqi 21~24 stars are equipped with chemical propulsion system, with orbit maneuvering capability of more than 300km. The satellite can perform orbital maneuvering according to the demand to ensure the continuous stability of satellite coverage.
2. Continuous coverage for 8 hours
With low inclination circular orbit, Tianqi 21~24 satellites are able to provide continuous coverage of middle and low latitude areas for 8 hours, and the average revisit time is less than 10 minutes, which greatly improves the coverage capability of Tianqi constellation for middle and low latitude areas. With the continuous launch of the follow-up satellites of Apocalypse, by June 2024, the Apocalypse Constellation will be able to realize 24-hour continuous coverage.
This mission is the first sea launch of the Ceres 1 launch vehicle and the first sea launch mission carried out by a private rocket company in China with success.
Different from land launch, launching satellites at sea is a brand-new mode, featuring strong flexibility, good mission adaptability, excellent launch economy, etc. It can flexibly select launch points and drop zones to meet the launch needs of payloads in various orbits, and effectively solve the long-standing concern of the outside world about the safety of the drop zone. However, due to the high technical difficulty, only a few countries in the world have the ability to implement the launch breakthroughs are:
1, the first domestic private rocket launch at sea
2, the world's first unsupported land and sea general-purpose maneuvering platform launch
3, the world's first unguided thermal launch of a solid rocket at sea
4, the first domestic commercial spaceflight to enter an 800km inclined orbit
5. The world's first rocket to adopt high-precision navigation program with vertical self-alignment and online misalignment angle correction at sea.
6. The world's first solid rocket to adopt non-fireworks locking release mechanism.
Meanwhile, in terms of technology development, Star River Power Aerospace has carried out many technological innovations of the Ceres series of rockets for the satellite launch market demand:
1. Rocket upper stage structure/power/electrical integration technology
2. Vertical self-alignment of the dynamic base at sea and high-precision navigation technology with online misalignment angle correction.
3、Simple control technology without roll control device for the first stage.
4. Modularized multi-star separation timing design technology
5、Single spring-based launch vehicle fairing simple safety separation technology
6. Rapid and safe active de-orbiting technology for upper stage of rocket
7, Parameter orthogonalization three-dimensional mode accurate prediction technology
8、High-integration/low-cost/integrated electrical system technology
9, low-cost space-based S-band high bit rate telemetry technology
10, lightweight multi-functional shaped composite material upper stage integrated bracket design and molding technology
11, distributed with pressure separation rail attitude control power system technology
12, all-metal 3D printing rail control engine technology
13, multifunctional miniaturization rail attitude control valve design technology
14, low-cost non-dependence of land and sea general transportation launch vehicle technology
15, solid rocket non-fire lock release technology
16, solid rocket sea unguided hot launch technology
Galactic Energy Aerospace has further expanded the successful experience of land launch to sea launch, and for the first time, the Ceres 1 sea-launched launch vehicle has used unguided hot launch for the dynamic pedestal launch environment under the swaying conditions at sea. Relative to the tube ejection and launcher and other guided launch methods, Ceres 1 sea-launched launch vehicle continues to use the land transfer launch vehicle thermal launch, the launch vehicle on board the ship after the fixed, only in the tail end of the rocket increased magnesium belt locking mechanism, the structure is simple, easy to operate, and less demanding on the ground to protect the conditions. The magnesium belt locking mechanism can ensure the safety of the rocket's erection under shaking conditions before ignition, and it can be ablated and unlocked after ignition to ensure the reliable takeoff of the rocket.
This mission has verified the safety technology of Ceres 1 launch vehicle for hot launch at sea as well as its wide platform adaptability, which can provide more comprehensive and convenient launch services for subsequent commercial satellite users. In the future, the number of sea launches of Ceres 1 launch vehicle will gradually increase and go hand in hand with the frequency of land launches, which will further promote the continuous enhancement of the high-density launch capability of Galactic Energy.
The 19th Asian Games will be held in Hangzhou on September 23rd this year, and it is worth noting that e-sports has become an official competition event of the Asian Games for the first time. For this launch, StarHub Aerospace joins hands with Hangzhou Asian Games official online branding provider, Electric Soul Network, to enshrine the e-sports mascot, Mengmeng, into space along with the dreams of all e-sports people.
