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Spacewalk mission set for 2008 - official
By Guan Xiaomeng (Chinadaily.com.cn)
Updated: 2006-02-24 16:32
Sources from the China Manned Space Flight Engineering Office said that the
Shenzhou-7 space flight, China's third manned space flight, would be launched in
2008 with the mission of a space walk.
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| Boarding Shenzhou-6 astronauts, Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng have
their first meal in capsule at 11:16 a.m.and then say they "feel good" in
capsule on Oct 12, 2005. China's second manned spacecraft, Shenzhou-6,
carrying two astronauts, successfully entered its planned orbit 21 minutes
after lefting land on Wednesday morning, Oct 12, 2005.[Xinhua]
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Wang Zhougui, director of the office, revealed in a lecture in that the
development of China's space program would take three steps in the near future:
First, Shenzhou-7 will carry astronauts to space for a space walk in 2008;
second, Shenzhou-8 will fly into space with the more significant mission of a
space dock; and third, China will establish her own space station, third only
after the United States and former Soviet Union.
According to Wang, compared with the Shenzhou-6 astronauts, who never walked
out of their spacecraft during their 5-day space travel, Shenzhou-7 astronauts
would try to get out in space to "take a breath" of the space air, according to
a report in Xinwen Chenbao (Shanghai Morning Post), a newspaper based in
Shanghai.
"The space walking astronauts will walk in the self-made space suit and do
some space experiments. Our initial plans are to have 1 or 2 astronauts walk in
space for about half an hour," said Wang, adding that the exact walking time
would be finally fixed depending on the mission progressing at that time.
Shenzhou-8, with the mission of a space dock, will be launched around 2009 to
2011. Wang continued to explain that the space docks refer to those between two
space flights or between a space flight and a space capsule.
"We will be able to carry out space aid, space cooperation, and other
high-level space missions once we succeed in space docks," Wang said,
forecasting a fine future for China's manned space program.
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