With 55 launches, Mars landing and space station dockings China dominated the space race in 2021 – India Today

As the new age space race commences, 2021 will be remembered as the year when countries outpaced each other in technological marvelling as they breached new frontiers beyond the orbit of Earth.

From the US to Europe to China to the Middle East to India, countries are fighting for their share of the space that goes beyond the orbit of the Moon towards Mars and away. China seems to be leading this race going into 2022 with most launches in 2021. Beijing, fueling its ever-expanding space programme, conducted 55 space launches in 2021.

China has carried out 55 space launch missions in 2021, with this number ranking first in the world, the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) said.

The country on Thursday conducted the last launch of 2021, blasting a Long March 3B carrier rocket from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan province. The rocket carried an experimental satellite, named Communication Technology Demonstrator 9, into a geosynchronous orbit. It was the 48th flight of the Long March rocket family and the 55th of China's launch vehicle fleet in 2021.

By now, the Long March rocket fleet has carried out more launches than any other rocket family in the world. All the Long March flights this year were successful, CASC said in a statement.

The most anticipated Chinese launch in 2021 had been of the first batch of astronauts departing for its under-construction space station. Named Tiangong, which translates to a "Heavenly Palace", the Chinese space station has been designed to house at least three astronauts for long-duration stays, and six for shorter stays.

China launched three astronauts to its under-construction space station. (Photo: AP)

Beijing conducted multiple launches this year to construct the second flying outpost in zero-gravity after the International Space Station. The China National Space Administration also performed one of the fastest docking when it launched the Tianzhou-2, dubbed the "delivery guy that mated with the space station in just eight hours after the launch.

Beijing recently launched the second batch of astronauts with the first female astronaut to the Space Station. The astronauts earlier this week completed the fourth extravehicular activity (EVAs) and returned to the space station core module Tianhe. The EVAs was conducted to test the function and performance of the core module airlock cabin, extravehicular suit and mechanical arm, and assessed the technologies related to EVAs, the coordination of taikonauts inside and outside the space station, and the coordination between space and Earth.

While the year will be remembered for Chinese ingenuity in space, mishaps wont go unnoticed. A Long March 5B rocket came down uncontrollably endangering lives of humans and property earlier this year.

China has been criticised for its habit of not planning the re-entry properly. In 2020, they had launched another Long March 5B rocket which made an 'out-of-control' re-entry into the earth, damaging buildings in two villages that were situated in the Republic of Ivory Coast, in West Africa.

Beijing conducted multiple launches this year to construct the second flying outpost in zero-gravity. (Photo: AP)

The debris from the 2021 rocket finally crashed into the Indian Ocean with the bulk of its components destroyed upon re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere. China dismissed the concern as western hype.

With 2021 ending, China has newer plans for 2022. From sending probes to the Moon to building a lunar research base with Russia and the completion of its under-construction space station will boost its prowess in space that has largely been dominated by the US. Meanwhile, its rover is already trundling on Mars as Beijing begins work on sending a probe towards Jupiter and Saturn.

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With 55 launches, Mars landing and space station dockings China dominated the space race in 2021 - India Today