China’s manned space mission – Is China the next space power?
China launches unmanned spacecraft successfully for first space docking. The nation wants to have a manned space station up and running by 2020. To that end, China plans to launch two more Shenzhou docking missions to Tiangong 1 before the end of 2012. China space station opens for the world to create a platform of scientific research for Chinese scientists and their peers from all over the world. The new knowledge obtained through space science research should be common wealth for human beings and should benefit the whole world. Here you will get the details about China’s manned space mission – Is China the next space power?.
China launches unmanned spacecraft successfully: The Shenzhou 8 spacecraft blasted off atop a Chinese Long March 2F rocket at 5:58 p.m. EDT today 2:58 p.m. PDT, and 5:58 a.m. local time on November 1 from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Inner Mongolia. Everything apparently went smoothly; Shenzhou 8 entered its initial orbit about 20 minutes after liftoff, and its power-generating solar panels opened on schedule, according to the Chinese state news agency Xinhua.
What will happen in coming days?
After two days, Shenzhou 8 is slated to rendezvous with the robotic Tiangong 1 space module, which has been orbiting Earth for a month. The meet-up between Shenzhou 8 and Tiangong 1 will be China’s first in-space docking a significant achievement in itself, but also a major step toward much bigger accomplishments in the future. Shenzhou 8 is carrying a joint Chinese-German payload, for instance, that will test the effects of microgravity on various biological specimens, including plants, nematodes, bacteria and human cancer cells.
Is China the next space power?
Yes, chances are there China will become the next space power. China is only the third country, after Russia and the United States, to develop spacecraft capable of flying humans to and from space. At least one of those missions which are known as Shenzhou 9 and Shenzhou 10 should be manned. Lofting to orbit an unmanned vehicle to test out technologies that could help the nation build a space station by 2020.
The mastering of rendezvous and docking technologies will lay a key technical foundation for China’s building of space station and deep-space exploration. It will make it possible for China to carry out space exploration of larger scale.
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Tags: china, Is China the next space power?, Shenzhou 8, Space, space craft, Tiangong 1
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