TIANGONG 1 AND MARS: This week, China's new space station, Tiangong 1, is making a series of bright passes through the morning skies of North America. On Dec. 18th, Kevin Fetter of Brockville, Canada, caught the 8.5-metric-ton spaceship flying past the planet Mars ( video): Tiangong 1 is unoccupied now, but China is planning to send Taikonauts to visit the experimental station at least once and possibly twice in 2012. To prepare for their arrival, last Thursday automated systems onboard Tiangong 1 began a series of air quality checks inside the station's 15-cubic meter pressurized volume. Tiangong 1 is currently about as bright as the stars of the Big Dipper (a value that will approximately double when future spacecraft dock with it). To see it, check Spaceweather's Simple Satellite Tracker or your cell phone for local flyby times.
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