China astronauts reaching for the stars
Print Edition
The first group of Chinese astronauts who have been selected for the mission of building China鈥檚 space station is undergoing training for extravehicular activities, or EVA, preparing for the scheduled manned space mission.
According to the China National Space Administration, a total of 11 missions to build China鈥檚 space station are planned for the next two years, including the construction of the core module that is scheduled to be launched in the first half of this year, two lab capsules, as well as four manned craft and four cargo craft.
At the China Astronaut Research and Training Center in Beijing, Wang Yaping, a female Chinese astronaut who traveled for 15 days in space in June 2013, put on training suits weighing more than 120kg and entered a large water tank with the help of a mechanical arm.
Water provides the best medium on Earth for simulating weightlessness in space and helps astronauts train for EVA, such as spacewalking and maintenance. The water training tank, 10 meters deep and with a diameter of 23 meters, is the largest in Asia.
During the training session lasting more than four hours, seven divers assisted Wang to complete her tasks, while staff also monitored proceedings from a control room.
Wang Yanlei, a staff member at the center, said that to simulate a five-hour mission in space, an astronaut will undergo 50 hours of underwater training on Earth. Each session lasts four to six hours.
He said if it is a complicated task or involves many maneuvers, the astronaut will become exhausted and lose 1 to 2 kilograms by the end of the session.
Last month, the China Manned Space Agency said the core module of China鈥檚 planned space station has passed a factory review, along with the project鈥檚 Tianzhou-2 cargo craft.
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