China quietly tested its first inflatable space module in orbit

BREMEN, Germany — China tested out a small expandable module in orbit during the recent Shijian-19 mission, an update more than a month after the spacecraft’s landing reveals. The Shijian-19 retrievable satellite launched on a Long March 2D rocket from Jiuquan Sept. 27 and landed late Eastern Oct. 10 at the nearby Dongfeng landing site in the Gobi Desert. The China Academy of Space Technology (CAST), which manufactured both Shijian-19 and the test module, revealed that the “inflatable flexible sealed module” completed an on-orbit test in a Nov. 21 statement. …

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