During the Month of June 2023, CASC 中國航天 China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, China Aerospace’s first “ground space station” has been built, which can simulate the environment of the moon and Mars! Looking at the northeast corner of the motherland, a space environment ground simulation device called “ground space station” was officially completed not long ago, and it has entered the trial operation stage. Many indicators have reached the world’s leading level.
As the first large-scale scientific device in my country’s aerospace field, the “Ground Space Station” is the first comprehensive research device in the world that has the most comprehensive environmental factors and can realize the study of multi-scale and cross-scale environmental effects. Contribute wisdom and strength.
The “Ground Space Station” is located in the Science and Technology Innovation City of Harbin New District, Heilongjiang Province, China, People’s Republic of China and is jointly constructed by Harbin Institute of Technology and China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. In the construction park, there are four experimental buildings of “one large and three small”, the “one large” refers to the space comprehensive environmental experiment building, and the “three small” refers to the space plasma science experiment building, the space magnetic environment science experiment building and the animal training room .
According to the design plan, the “ground space station” can simulate nine types of space environmental factors, including vacuum, high and low temperature, charged particles, electromagnetic radiation, space dust, plasma, weak magnetic field, neutral gas, and microgravity, and can explain the impact of the space environment on materials. , Devices, systems and living organisms, the influence rules and mechanism of action.
Compared with moving experimental instruments and equipment into space, the “ground space station” can not only save costs and reduce potential safety hazards, but also set specific environmental factors according to scientific problems and engineering needs, and conduct repeated verifications without time and space constraints, thus Create safer and more convenient experimental conditions and scientific research methods.
“In the future, many experiments that need to be carried out in space can be completed on the ground.” Yan Jihong, deputy dean of the Institute of Space Environment and Physical Science of Harbin Institute of Technology, said that this is the dream of scientists.
Figure 1: Effect drawing of space environment ground simulation device
Figure 2: Lunar dust cabin of space environment ground simulation device
Figure 3: The space plasma environment simulation and research system of the space environment ground simulator
Figure 4: The Martian Dust Chamber of the Space Environment Ground Simulator
Images and visuals are from their Respectives CMS China Manned SpaceCNSA-China National Space Administration
