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China to conduct its first space docking in 2011
By Li Xinran |
September 23, 2010, Thursday
|
Online Edition
Online Edition
CHINA'S first space laboratory is expected to remotely dock a domestic spacecraft next year as the country's first attempt.
The Tiangong 1 space module, an 8-ton "target vehicle," is scheduled for launch early next year to reach its orbit ahead of the unmanned docking attempt by Shenzhen 8 spacecraft months later.
The Shenzhou 8 will blast off on a Long March 2F rocket, in the second half of 2011 to complete the mission prior to China's first manned docking between its successor Shenzhou 9 and Tiangong 1 the same year.
Preparations for the landmark moment went smoothly while the Shenzhen 8 is undergoing assembly.
Meanwhile, seven pilots, including two young mothers, were officially appointed to become the country's next-generation astronauts. They are all pilots with the People's Liberation Army Air Force. None of their names were released.
The country's first two female aeronauts are both seasoned transport pilots in their 30s who have spent more than 1,200 hours in the air and served numerous rescue missions and war games, according to earlier report by the People's Daily.
The five male astronauts are jet fighter pilots who will be sent to the orbit and take part in the manned docking of China's future space laboratory, the newspaper said.
The new generation of astronauts will complete their five-year training by the time China starts to build its first manned space station.
The core module of the first space station should be completed around 2020, said Gu Yidong, commander in chief of China's Manned Space Engineering Program.
The Tiangong 1 space module, an 8-ton "target vehicle," is scheduled for launch early next year to reach its orbit ahead of the unmanned docking attempt by Shenzhen 8 spacecraft months later.
The Shenzhou 8 will blast off on a Long March 2F rocket, in the second half of 2011 to complete the mission prior to China's first manned docking between its successor Shenzhou 9 and Tiangong 1 the same year.
Preparations for the landmark moment went smoothly while the Shenzhen 8 is undergoing assembly.
Meanwhile, seven pilots, including two young mothers, were officially appointed to become the country's next-generation astronauts. They are all pilots with the People's Liberation Army Air Force. None of their names were released.
The country's first two female aeronauts are both seasoned transport pilots in their 30s who have spent more than 1,200 hours in the air and served numerous rescue missions and war games, according to earlier report by the People's Daily.
The five male astronauts are jet fighter pilots who will be sent to the orbit and take part in the manned docking of China's future space laboratory, the newspaper said.
The new generation of astronauts will complete their five-year training by the time China starts to build its first manned space station.
The core module of the first space station should be completed around 2020, said Gu Yidong, commander in chief of China's Manned Space Engineering Program.
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