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Space mission set: two to orbit in Shenzhou-VI
By Zhao Huanxin (China Daily)
Updated: 2005-01-21 02:32
Two Chinese astronauts may be orbiting Earth as early as September, this time
spending five days aloft in the nation's second manned venture into outer space,
China's space agency chief confirmed yesterday.
Sun Laiyan, who heads the China National Space Administration, also said the
country expects to expand exchanges with the United States in space science and
applications to further tap co-operative potential.
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| The reentry capsule of the Shenzhou-V spaceship sits on display in
Shenzhen on November 11, 2004.
[newsphoto] | "Compared with (China's first
astronaut) Yang Liwei's solo mission, Shenzhou-VI will carry two men to circle
the globe for five to six days sometime in September or October," Sun told China
Daily.
"If the flight is successful, China's space programme will proceed to space
walks and spaceship docking, with the earliest space walks scheduled for 2007,"
the senior space official added.
Amid widespread media speculation about the nation's space programme, the
official confirmed the country has been actively preparing for the take-off of
another spaceship following its maiden manned mission in October 2003.
"There are more demanding requirements to ensure the reliability of the
capsule and safety of two astronauts compared with Yang's flight -- for example
in life-support systems," said Sun.
Yang's mission lasted 21 1/2 hours.
Chinese scientists have already worked out problems regarding spacecraft
environmental controls and life support, according to a statement issued by
China Aerospace Science and Technology, the major manufacturer of the manned
spacecraft and its launch vehicle.
Sun said there is an arrangement for astronauts to move from the spaceship's
re-entry module to live and do scientific tests in the craft's orbital module.
Due to optimization of its configuration, the spacecraft will hardly hold
more weight on the second launch, though it will carry the second astronaut and
fly the extra days.
It will again be launched atop a China-manufactured Long March 2F rocket, he
said.
Asked if Yang Liwei will be part of the second mission, Sun said no decision
has yet been made about the crew's makeup.
But he said the duo will be chosen from the same 14 fighter-jet pilots who
were part of the first selection process in which Yang was chosen.
Finalists will not be announced until one or two days before the designated
launch, based on astronauts training performance, psychology and mood, he said.
Manned space activity aside, China also plans to send about five satellites
into orbit this year, including foreign-made communications satellites and
several others for scientific experiment, he said, declining to specify further
details.
Co-operation with the US
Sun said he looks forward to meeting his US counterpart this year when the
National Aeronautical and Space Administration (NASA) administrator makes a trip
to China.
Sun met with NASA chief Sean O'Keefe in Washington in early December, and Sun
said he believed the talks paved the way to further bilateral relations.
That was the first meeting between the two agencies since 1996.
There is broad space for China and the United States to collaborate, such as
in space technology applications and space science -- including exploration of
outer space, Sun said.
He stressed more understanding between the two is paramount, since there is
some misunderstanding in the United States that China might try to acquire space
technology for other purposes.
Sun said such speculation is totally groundless, noting the country has
always relied on itself and developed space technology independently.
The official said his agency representatives will participate in a
NASA-sponsored workshop on deep space exploration at the University of Maryland
in College Park in April.
International co-operation on space programmes allow partners to supplement
each other's advantages and share risks and costly investments, he
said.
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