The Chang'e 2014 Countdown Thread!

[xenomorph555]

Launches can be secretive, but that's not the same as secret. I can't think of a single launch where we don't know where the payload was going or generally what it was doing.

A good point I was going to mention, we get lot's of information about all missions sometimes years in advance. All recent launch's have all been recorded and sent to the internet as a growing tradition and launch's are basically impossible to hide in China now, unless of course it's military.

[Kryten]

Military too. There's always a lot more information out there than you might think.

[B787_300]

Launches can be secretive, but that's not the same as secret. I can't think of a single launch where we don't know where the payload was going or generally what it was doing.

UUUUUUM how about most of the NRO Launches and the X37b launches?

[Kryten]

UUUUUUM how about most of the NRO Launches and the X37b launches?

NROL-65 is a KH-11 imaging satellite and is currently in an orbit of 266 x 441 km, at 96.9°

X-37B OTV-3 is an X-37B reusable component testing platform currently at 319 X 332 km 43.5°

NROL-33 is a 'Quasar' series communications sat, relaying data from recon birds to ground stations, and is presumably currently in geostationary orbit, having been observed in a GTO at 20.1°

and so on

I could give the full orbital elements for all of these, but they'd be gibberish to everyone here, including me. All of this is from amateur observations, comparisons of similar launches with known data, and collation of any available official info.

[Reddragon]

Launches can be secretive, but that's not the same as secret. I can't think of a single launch where we don't know where the payload was going or generally what it was doing.

Under secretive I didn't mean 'in secret' either. I wanted to highlight that China indeed conducts launches only revealed very close to launch day or restrain information about some missions (no conspiracy involved).

[B787_300]

I could give the full orbital elements for all of these, but they'd be gibberish to everyone here, including me. All of this is from amateur observations, comparisons of similar launches with known data, and collation of any available official info.

I agree that While knowing where they are is important, the fact remains that the X37b could be doing ANYTHING and all we have to go on for the others is what the gov says... and they could be disseminating false information because all those sats have National Security issues at stake. But it is meh because this thread is for the chinese mission not how secretive satellite launches can be.

[xenomorph555]

Under secretive I didn't mean 'in secret' either. I wanted to highlight that China indeed conducts launches only revealed very close to launch day or restrain information about some missions (no conspiracy involved).

Oh I will agree with you on that, sometimes we don't learn who pilots the shenzhou's till the day beforehand.

[lajoswinkler]

This might be totally offtopic, but I didn't want to open a new thread just to post this new video.

Hopefully, one day KSP will also look like this.

It's Cygnus vehicle.

[xenomorph555]

UPDATE

So finally some more news has popped up, the LM-3C is getting close the final stages of preparation and we are about a month away from the launch on the 24th October. A nice image can be found on the ChinaSpace facebook page.

Also congratulations to India for their wonderful mars mission, the more deep space missions the better I say

[camlost]

According to

http://bbs.9ifly.cn/thread-11379-14-1.html

This mission is Chang'e-5-T1, which will perform a moon fly-by and return to earth.

[xenomorph555]

Indeed.

I should also point out that with new information coming in it is becoming more likely the craft will enter lunar orbit.

[Kryten]

It's a flyby, Xinhua just had a minor mistranslation. This is using an LM-3C and DFH-3 bus, the same as Chang'e 1; take the return capsule into account, and it's unlikely it could enter lunar orbit, nevermind leave it.

[xenomorph555]

Unless they are using the new propulsion system hehe jk.

In all seriousness though if it is only a flyby, then I have here the estimated mission time *cough cough* 8.17 days, so starting from 24th October till 2nd of November.

[xenomorph555]

Fellow taikonauts, there is only 24 days left until china's return to the moon, rejoice!!!!!

[xenomorph555]

It seems the launch date has lowered one day to the 23rd

13 DAYS TO GO!

[Streetwind]

I hope they make launch footage of this one freely available. It seems Chang'e 3 had an unusual (for China) amount of freely available video coverage, and it would be great to see that continue.

[xenomorph555]

They will trust me, if you follow the Chinese space program like I do you would know they have become quite open these past years and have posted all of their launch videos online (even for their spy sats) for ages now.

Heres the launch of the satellite they launched on 28th September:

But they almost always show of the launch's of important stuff manned missions, moon missions, tiangong,etc. So this ones definitely going to be posted.

[Kryten]

I don't get the impression this is seen as being terribly important in China, and there's not been much pre-launch coverage. I certainly wouldn't expect a live telecast.

[xenomorph555]

Well it is only a small test 9 day mission, the actual Chang'e 5 mission in 2017 will be glorified as the grand pinnacle of Chinese science.

[xenomorph555]

10 days to go!

[Streetwind]

http://www.space.com/27422-china-moon-mission-launch-october.html

[Kryten]

We have photos of the rocket at the pad, complete with upper composite and boosters. Apparently we might have launch before h 24th, though how much earlier I'm not certain.

[xenomorph555]

Well it recently got put forward to launch on the 23rd, probably not earlier though.

[Kryten]

We'll see when the NOTAMs emerge. It really doesn't feel like it'll be that long.

[xenomorph555]

We are now 1 day away, so...