Xuntian Telescope

Liftoff Time

No Earlier Than 2027

Mission Details

Xuntian

Wiki

Xuntian, formerly known as the Chinese Space Station Telescope (CSST), is a Chinese space telescope designed to perform high-resolution, large-area, multi-band imaging and slit-less spectroscopy surveys of the sky at ultraviolet to infrared wavelengths of 255 – 1000 nm. The survey camera is slated to cover approximately 17500 square degrees of the sky in various bands, reaching maximum magnitudes of about 26. Xuntian will carry a survey camera, a tera-hertz receiver, a multi-channel imager, an integral field spectrograph, and a cool planet imaging coronagraph. Xuntian will be launched to a Low Earth Orbit that will be co-orbiting with the Tiangong space station/Chinese Space Station, which will allow for periodic docking with the station for regular maintenance by astronauts.

Low Earth Orbit

1 Payload

15,500 kilograms

Rocket

Active
Long March 5B

Active Since 2020

China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation logo

Agency

CASC

Rocket

Height: 53.66m

Payload to Orbit

LEO: 23,000 kg

GTO: 0 kg

Liftoff Thrust

10,565 Kilonewtons

Fairing

Diameter: 5.2m

Height: 20.5m

Stages

2

Strap-ons

4

Launch Site

LC-101

Wenchang Space Launch Site, China

Fastest Turnaround

57 days 22 hours