Tiangong space station is a space station independently designed and developed by China. In order to build and operate the space station, it was necessary to make breakthroughs in many fields and master several key technologies, which were characterized over a long technological span and underwent difficult verifications. Therefore, in addition to ground verification, on-orbit flight tests of key technologies for the assembly, construction and operation of the space station were planned to be conducted used by the core module, taking into account the differences in the gravity environment between space and the Earth, in order to lay a foundation for the subsequent comprehensive assembly, construction and long-term on-orbit operation of the space station. In this paper, the mission characteristics of the space station are briefly introduced, along with the key technologies for the assembly and construction of the space station, and then the on-orbit verification tests are comprehensively introduced.

Based on the requirements of manned spaceships, this paper introduces the characteristics of the propulsion system from the perspectives of design scheme, basic composition, safety and reliability measures, and also introduces the ground test verification and on-orbit flight characteristics of the Shenzhou 13 propulsion system. According to the flight results, it was seen that the performance of the Shenzhou 13 propulsion system fully met the engineering requirements for the manned space mission.

 As China’s only manned launch vehicle, the LM-2F Launch vehicle successfully launched the Shenzhou 12 manned spacecraft into its predetermined orbit on June 12, 2021, signifying the successful completion of the first manned launch mission in the construction and key technology test stage of China Space Station (CSS). From the launch of the Shenzhou 11 manned spacecraft on October 12, 2016 to the launch of Shenzhou 12 in 2021, over the past five years, the LM-2F launch vehicle has been continuously improved in terms of product reliability through technological innovation and design improvement, and its flight reliability index has increased from 0.97 to 0.98. Based on the new launch mission requirements for the construction stage of CSS, this paper introduces the technological innovation and reliability improvement methods of the LM-2F from the aspects of design improvement, research methods and process optimization. The LM-2F launch vehicle will make greater contributions in supporting the construction of CSS with higher reliability and perfect launch success rate.

The solid rocket motors for the escape system of China’s LM-2F manned launch vehicle are described, the key technologies and technical innovations utilized are summarized. The technical features and development of foreign manned launch abort systems are also presented. The development trends of the solid rocket motor for future Chinese manned launch vehicle escape systems are proposed, which can provide a reference for the future development of manned launch vehicle escape systems.