China successfully launched Tiangong-2 space lab

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• China's Tiangong-2 successfully launched

  Crossover: China's Tiangong-2 successfully launched. Tiangong-2 has just been successfully launched. Let's live cross to our reporter Han Peng again at the Beijing Aerospace Command and Control Center. Q: What's happening there now? ...

The Tiangong-2 stands with its carrier rocket on the launch pad at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Jiuquan, northwest China's Gansu Province, Sept. 9, 2016. China's second space lab Tiangong-2 is scheduled to be put into space between September 15 and 20, according to the office of China's manned space program. (Xinhua/Yang Zhiyuan) 

Special reports China Tiangong-2 Space Lab Launch

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The graphics shows China will launch the Tiangong-2 space lab from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China's Gobi Desert at 10:04 pm on Sep 15. (Xinhua/Qu Zhendong) JIUQUAN, Sept. 15 (Xinhua) -- China's Tiangong-2 space lab blasted off on Thursday, marking another milestone in its increasingly ambitious space program, which envisions a mission to Mars by the end of this decade and its own space station by around 2020.

In a cloud of smoke underneath a mid-autumn full moon, Tiangong-2 roared into the air at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China's Gobi desert, on the back of a Long March-2F T2 rocket at 10:04 p.m. Beijing Time.

The Long March-2F T2 is a two-stage launch vehicle that uses four strap-on boosters during its first stage.

About 20 minutes later, the mission was declared a success.

Tiangong-2 separated from the rocket and entered the preset orbit 575 seconds after blast-off, a statement from the mission control read.

While in space, the 8.6-tonne Tiangong-2 will maneuver itself into an orbit about 380 kilometers above Earth for initial in-orbit tests. It will then transfer to a slightly higher orbit of about 393 kilometers above Earth's surface.

Later, the Shenzhou-11 manned spacecraft will carry two astronauts into space to dock with the lab. The astronauts will work in the lab for 30 days before returning to Earth.

In April 2017, China's first space cargo ship Tianzhou-1, which literally means heavenly vessel, will be sent into orbit to dock with the space lab, providing fuel and other supplies.

Wu Ping, deputy director of China's manned space engineering office, said on Wednesday that experts will verify and evaluate key technologies involved with in-orbit refueling and equipment repairs, as well as those related to astronauts' long-term stay in space during the mission.

They will also use the lab, which is designed to operate for at least two years, to conduct space science experiments on a relatively large scale compared to China's previous efforts.

China's manned space program has entered a "new phase of application and development," Wu said.

DREAM LAB

Measuring 10.4 meters in length and up to 3.35 meters in diameter, the tube-like Tiangong-2 is hardly the size of a palace. But its name means heavenly palace in Chinese, and it symbolizes the dream that the Chinese have long envisioned in the sky.

Originally built as a backup to Tiangong-1, Tiangong-2 looks much like its predecessor launched in 2011, but its interior living quarters and life support system have been improved to allow longer astronaut stays.

It is designed to enable two astronauts to live in space for up to 30 days and to receive manned and cargo spaceships.

Once inside Tiangong-2, two astronauts arriving from the Shenzhou-11 spaceship will carry out key experiments related to in-orbit equipment repairs, aerospace medicine, space physics and biology, such as quantum key distribution, atomic space clocks and solar storm research.

"The number of experiments carried out by Tiangong-2 will be the highest of any manned space mission so far," said Lyu Congmin with the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

According to Zhu Zongpeng, chief designer of China's space lab system, Tiangong-2's workload includes POLAR, a collaboration between Swiss, Polish and Chinese institutions to study gamma ray bursts, the most energetic events in the universe.

A cold atomic space clock, which scientists say only loses one second in about 30 million years, is expected to make future navigation more accurate.

Scientists will also conduct a space-Earth quantum key distribution and laser communications experiment, to facilitate space-to-ground quantum communication.

Also, piggybacking on the Tiangong-2 launch will be a robotic arm that can be used for in-orbit repairs. There will also be a micro satellite that will orbit close to the space lab and snap on to Tiangong-2 and the visiting Shenzhou-11 spacecraft crew.

Earlier reports said Tiangong-2 will also carry out three experiments created by the winners of a Hong Kong middle school design contest.

"Tiangong-2 has a designed life of two years, but it is expected to work much longer than that in space," said Zhu.

Both Zhu and Wu referred to Tiangong-2 as China's first space lab "in the strict sense."

Its predecessor Tiangong-1, which docked with the Shenzhou-8, Shenzhou-9 and Shenzhou-10 spaceships and undertook a series of experiments, was mainly used to verify technology involved in space docking and serve as a simple platform for a number of scientific experiments, Wu said.

"In comparison, Tiangong-2 will boast many more experiments," said Zhu.

Tiangong-1 ended its data service earlier this year and will, reportedly, burn up as it falls into Earth's atmosphere in the latter half of 2017.

Tiangong-2 will drop into the Pacific Ocean at the end of its mission, according to the manned space engineering office.

TRAILBLAZER

The successful launch of the Tiangong-2, along with the maiden flight of China's new generation carrier rocket Long March-7 in June, bodes well for the final phase of China's three-step manned space program.

The first step, to send an astronaut into space and return safely, was fulfilled by Yang Liwei in the Shenzhou-5 mission in 2003.

The second step is developing advanced space flight techniques and technologies including extra-vehicular activity and orbital docking. This phase also includes the launch of two space laboratories - effectively mini space-stations that can be manned on a temporary basis.

Finally, the third step will be to assemble and operate a permanent manned space station.

It is expected that the space station will consist of three parts -- a core module attached to two space labs, each weighing about 20 tonnes.

According to Zhou Jianping, chief engineer of China's manned space program, one important target of Tiangong-2 is to verify technology involved in the construction of the space station.

"It has the basic technological capacity of a space station," Zhou said.

"Once the space lab mission comes to an end, China will start building our own space station," he said, adding this could start in as early as 2017.

Construction of the space station is planned for completion by around 2020.

It will enter into service around 2022, with an initial designed life of at least 10 years, Zhu Zongpeng told Xinhua. By then, astronauts could be stationed in orbit for missions that last more than one year, he added.

The Chinese space station will be much smaller than the current International Space Station (ISS), which weigh 420 tonnes, but it can be expanded for "scientific research and international cooperation," Zhou said.

With the ISS set to retire in 2024, the Chinese station will offer a promising alternative, and China will be the only country with a permanent space station.

According to Zhou, the Chinese space station will be more "economically efficient and informationized" than the ISS. It will be able to house a maximum of six astronauts at the same time and manned missions will become routine once the space station enters service.

Starting from scratch, China's ever-expanding multi-billion-dollar space program is increasingly becoming a source of national pride and a marker of technological expertise in the global community.

After launching its first manned mission in 2003, China staged a spacewalk in 2008, and sent Tiangong-1 into space in 2011.

It succeeded in a manned docking in space in 2012, becoming the third country to do so after the United States and Russia, and landed its Yutu rover on the moon a year later.

Now China is preparing Tianhe-1, a core space station module, which may be lifted by the powerful Chinese rocket Long March-5 in 2018. Additionally, Chinese scientists are making a Hubble-like telescope to orbit near the planned space station.

China also aims to send the Chang'e-5 probe to the moon and return with lunar samples in the second half of 2017, and to land a probe on Mars by 2021.

Source:Xinhua

Tiangong-2 experiments: Scientists to test new technologies in space

Full coverage: China Tiangong-2 Space Lab Launch

Chinese scientists are planning to use the country's new space laboratory to conduct over a dozen advanced experiments in space.

They are going to use the world's first in-space cold atomic clock to measure time more accurately, and increase the precision of navigation systems here on earth.

Scientists will also test a quantum communication system that relays encrypted information between the space lab and stations on the ground -- that will be impossible for third parties to hack. 

A materials lab on the Tiangong-2 will take advantage of zero-gravity conditions to test 18 new-age composite materials that will be used in future products.

Tiangong-2 will reach orbit in 585 seconds

Technical upgrades and innovations

Well for the latest on the Tiangong-2 mission and China's ongoing space program, we are joined now in the studio by my colleague, Wu Haojun.

Q1. So what is so special about the Tiangong-2 mission that sets it apart from China's previous space endeavours?

Well, not to dismiss work done previously but Tiangong-2 really is China's VERY FIRST space laboratory in a literal sense. Tiangong-2 of course builds on the work of the similarly designed space module Tiangong-1, which was sent into orbit five years ago. But scientists are quick to point out that Tiangong-2 is not simply a duplicate of Tiangong-1. For example, Tiangong-2 has upgraded living quarters and life support systems meaning astronauts can stay in orbit for longer periods.

And that's not all. The space lab is also equipped with robotic arms that can conduct maintenance work outside the lab - so in outer space - in place of the astronauts themselves. And in this digital age of smartphones and selfies. Tiangong-2 doesn't want to be left behind. The space lab will be accompanied by a small Banxing-2 satellite, which will capture images of the lab in orbit and monitor the space around it for potential hazards such as floating debris.

And last but not least, Tiangong-2 will be used primarily to conduct those all-important space science experiments and this time on a comparitively larger scale. These include a quantum communications experiment, in-orbit propellant resupply and a microwave radiometer for tracking ocean dynamics to name just a few.

Q2. The launch of Tiangong-2 starts a new chapter in China's space program...so what's next?

Well this is definitely just the beginning of a series of space endeavours already planned to take place in the near future. The launch of Tiangong 2 will be followed by a crewed spaceflight mission, Shenzhou 11, set to take place next month and that will be followed by an experimental cargo resupply mission, Tianzhou 1, in the first half of 2017. Now these recent plans are just the tip of the iceberg for China's long-term space ambitions. According to the country's Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, China is expected to have more than 200 spacecraft in orbit by 2020 and perform on average around 30 launches per year.

China's robotic or unmanned mission to Mars is due to begin around 2020. However, the ultimate goal is to assemble and operate a 60-ton space station by around 2022. As you can see everything has already been planned out.The key as with everything now is execution and for Chinese space scientists that means taking things one launch at a time.

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China eyes Silk Road countries for its Beidou satellite system

18 satellites to launch for BDS by 2018

China on Thursday vowed national efforts to complete its Beidou satellite navigation system to serve global users by 2020, with priority going to countries involved in the new Silk Road initiative.

The current goal of developing China's BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) is to "provide basic services to countries along the land and maritime Silk Roads and in neighboring regions by 2018, and to complete the constellation deployment of 35 satellites by 2020 to provide services to global users," said a white paper released Thursday by the State Council Information Office.

A "globalized" BDS would have "positive and practical significance" in terms of connectivity around the globe, especially the interconnection between China and Southeast Asian countries under the Silk Road plan, known as the Belt and Road initiative, Huang Jun, a professor at the School of Aeronautic Science and Engineering at Beihang University, told the Global Times on Thursday.

In line with the Belt and Road initiative, China will jointly build satellite navigation augmentation systems with relevant nations and promote international applications of navigation technologies, the white paper states.

To fulfill the 2018 goal, the country plans to launch some 18 satellites for the BDS by 2018, Ran Chengqi, BDS spokesperson, told a press conference on Thursday.

"In priority Chinese cities such as Beijing and Urumqi in Northwest China's Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region, as well as low latitude countries like Thailand, the BDS is capable of offering a positioning accuracy of better than five meters," said Ran, who is also director of China's Satellite Navigation System Management Office.

Since 2015, the country has sent up seven more satellites into space in support of the BDS, including five navigation satellites and two backup satellites, Ran added, citing Sunday's launch of the BDS' 23rd satellite - a backup satellite - as an example.

In 2020, the BDS might offer different positioning accuracy choices and could provide centimeter-level accuracy under certain requirements, said Lu Weijun, a BDS expert at Beijing University of Posts and Telecommunications.

Unique features

Despite being a late starter compared with the US-developed GPS, China's BDS has unique features, Huang said, citing the BDS short-message communication service as an example.

"The short-message communication service is mainly useful in places with insufficient ground and mobile communication capabilities, such as deserts, seas and disaster areas where communication facilities have been destroyed," Lu told the Global Times.

More than 40,000 fishing vessels along China's coastline have been equipped with the BDS application terminals, Ran said, adding that they also provided better communication for islands near the coastline.

The BDS short-message communication service is mainly handled by five Geostationary Orbit (GEO) satellites, Lu said. Located above China, the five GEO satellites mainly serve a coverage area of Chinese territories and the Asia-Pacific region" and "could be used to locally enhance the signal in wartime, when other satellites might have been closed."

An independently designed global navigation and positioning network would also contribute to national security, Huang said. Industrial chain

China is developing chips, modules and other basic products based on the BDS and other compatible systems, and fostering an independent BDS industrial chain, the white paper noted.

"By the end of April, the BDS technology has been applied to more than 24 million terminals and over 18 million mobile phones," Ran said.

It is expected that by the end of this year, up to 50 million mobile phones will have been installed with domestic chips that will be compatible with three satellite navigation systems, namely the BDS, GPS and Russia's GLONASS, Wang Hansheng, vice president of Olink Star, a Beijing-based company that makes navigation satellite system products, told the Global Times.

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China set to launch bigger space programme

Enlarge

This photo of the giant screen at the Jiuquan Space Centre shows the Shenzhou-9 spacecraft preparing to link with the Tiangong-1 module on June 24. China will deploy bigger spacecraft for longer missions following the success of its Shenzhou-9 voyage, allowing it to build a manned space station and potentially put a man on the moon, experts said.

China will deploy bigger spacecraft for longer missions following the success of its Shenzhou-9 voyage, allowing it to build a manned space station and potentially put a man on the moon, experts said.

The 13-day voyage of Shenzhou-9, which returned to Earth on Friday, was China's longest-ever space mission and included the nation's first woman astronaut among its three crew members.

In another first for China's 20-year space programme, which has cost more than $6 billion, the crew also achieved the country's first-ever manual docking with an orbital module, the Tiangong-1, a high-speed and high-risk manoeuvre.

In the next mission that will occur at the end of this year or in 2013, Shenzhou-10's astronauts will link up with Tiangong-1 in a similar flight, said Morris Jones, an Australian space expert focusing on China's programme.

The mission will be the last docking with the Tiangong-1, which was put into orbit in September last year.
Morris said no more astronauts would go on Tiangong-1 after the next mission. Then, in a few years, China will launch a more sophisticated version, the Tiangong-2.

When that comes into play, the dimensions of China's space programme will grow significantly, said Isabelle Sourbes-Verger, a specialist on China's space programme at France's National Centre for Scientific Research.

She said future vehicles would allow for larger space modules, longer missions and more powerful launch vehicles,


Enlarge

This photo of the giant screen at the Jiuquan Space Centre shows Chinese astronauts Liu Wang (C), Jing Haipeng (L) and Liu Yang in the Shenzhou-9 spacecraft as it prepares to link with the Tiangong-1 module on June 24. The crew achieved the country's first-ever manual docking with an orbital module, the Tiangong-1, a high-speed and high-risk manoeuvre.

"Longer periods in space -- one to three months -- cannot take place unless there is a vehicle bigger than the 8.5 tonne Tiangong-1, which also did not appear to have a resupply system," she told AFP.

"Tiangong-1... will be followed by two other versions with more powerful 'life support' systems... and will possibly be capable of docking with a second vehicle."

China is also developing the Long March 5, a next-generation booster rocket that will be needed if the nation hopes to place a bigger space station in orbit, said Joan Johnson-Freese, a professor at the US Naval War College.

"Launching that space station... depends on the successful development of a new heavy launch vehicle, the Long March 5," she told AFP.

"I would expect to see this large space station in orbit within the next 10 years -- which could make it the de facto replacement for the now orbiting International Space Station (ISS)," said Johnson-Freese.

She was referring to the life expectancy of the ISS -- run by the American, Russian, Japanese, European and Canadian space agencies -- which is likely to function only to around 2020.

China has never been invited to join the ISS.

Sourbes-Verger said further advances in China's space station programme would "guarantee" that the country plays a major role should any eventual cooperation with the ISS take place.

To realise its ambitions beyond 2020, which may include sending a man to the moon, China has also been advancing its "Chang'e" exploration programme. This entails satellite launches to explore the lunar surface.

"Likely within the next five to eight years China will also make a decision as to whether to pursue a human lunar mission," Johnson-Freese said.

Meanwhile the United States, after retiring its space shuttle fleet, is also developing a new rocket and technologies to place a man on an asteroid or on Mars, she said.

"Both countries are moving forward, but not in a competitive path," she said.

China's space programme remains far behind the Americans. This was highlighted by the fact that the manual space docking trumpeted by the Chinese on the Shenzhou-9 mission was done by the Americans in the 1960s.

"If there is a space race going on, I think it is in Asia," Johnson-Freese said, pointing out that India had also set ambitious goals.

July 1, 2012 by Boris Cambreleng
(c) 2012 AFP_PHYS.ORG

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The very latest on Saturday's launch of the historic Shenzhou-9 space mission. Both the crew and the launch time have been announced by a spokesman for China’s manned space program.



The Shenzhou-9 spaceship will be launched at 18:37 Beijing time on Saturday June 16th. The crew will consist of PLA astronauts Jing Haipeng and Liu Wang, and the first ever Chinese female astronaut, Liu Yang.

Astronaut Jing Haipeng.

The Shenzhou-9 is due to perform China’s first ever manned space docking mission with the Tiangong-1 orbiting module. It will be launched on board China’s Long March 2F rocket carrier.

All preparations have been completed at the launch site, and all systems are ready for the launch. The astronauts are said to be in good condition and are doing their final preparation work. The Shenzhou-9 mission headquarters is due to hold a press conference this afternoon, with the crew members due to meet the press. We’ll bring you full coverage of that as it happens.

Astronaut Liu Wang.

Astronaut Liu Yang.  Liu Yang, China's first woman astronaut waves as she leaves after attending a meet the press event at the Jiuquan satellite launch center near Jiuquan in western China's Gansu province, Friday, June 15, 2012. (AP / Ng Han Guan) View Larger Image Read more: http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/SciTech/20120615/china-space-manned-mission-120615/#ixzz1xvLRiFlA Related stories China's space lab Tiangong-1 enters docking orbit 2012-06-15 US astronauts wish Chinese peers well 2012-06-15 Crossover: Astronauts' final line-up 2012-06-14 Space module made for China's female astronauts 2012-06-14 China's first female astronaut meets media China's astronauts Jing Haipeng (C), Liu Wang (R) and Liu Yang meet with media in Jiuquan, northwest China's Gansu Province, June 15, 2012. The three astronauts will board Shenzhou-9 spacecraft on Saturday to fulfill China's first manned space docking mission. (Xinhua/Li Gang)     1 2 3 4 5 6 7   JIUQUAN, June 15 (Xinhua) -- China's first female astronaut Liu Yang, together with her two male crew mates Jing Haipeng and Liu Wang, met the media on Friday. The three astronauts will board the Shenzhou-9 spacecraft on Saturday at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China to fulfill China's first manned space docking mission. "I am grateful to the motherland and the people. I feel honored to fly into the space on behalf of hundreds of millions of female Chinese citizens," said Liu Yang. She said that to be an astronaut, one has to obtain a lot of theoretical knowledge, go through very challenging space living environment training and survive examinations on operation skills with no error. "The sense of mission and responsibility as well as the passion for aerospace undertakings are the source of courage to overcome difficulties," she said. "When I was a pilot, I flew in the sky. Now I am an astronaut, I will fly in the space. That will be a higher and farther flight," Liu said. She said many tasks have been arranged for this space trip. "Aside from fulfilling the tasks, I want to experience the fantastic environment in space and appreciate the beautiful Earth and our homeland from the space." She said she will keep a detailed record of her feelings and experiences and share with scientists and future astronauts when she comes back. She also expressed her gratefulness to all the people. "I will live up to your expectations and work with my teammates to fulfil this space mission," she said. All three crew members are former pilots of the People's Liberation Army (PLA). They are all members of the Communist Party of China. Enlisted in the army in 1997, Liu was a veteran pilot with 1,680 hours of flying experience and the deputy head of a flight unit of the PLA's Air Force before being recruited into China's second batch of prospective astronauts in May 2010. She is now an air force major. After two years of training that has shored up her astronautic skills and adaptability to the space environment, Liu excelled in testing and was selected in March this year as a candidate to crew the Shenzhou-9.     1 2 3 4 5 6 7 China to send its first woman into space June 15, 2012 by NG HAN GUAN, PHYS.COM   Enlarge File photo of Chinese People's Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force women fighter pilots at a PLA base in Beijing. China said Friday a female astronaut will be among the three-person team on board the Shenzhou-9 spacecraft, which will launch on Saturday, the official Xinhua news agency reported. (AP) — China will launch three astronauts, including a mother of one who flies transport planes, to live and work on a space station for about a week, a major step in its goal of becoming only the third nation with a permanent base orbiting Earth. Liu Yang, a 34-year-old, volleyball-playing air force pilot, and two male colleagues are expected to be launched Saturday in the Shenzhou 9 spacecraft that will dock with the bus-sized Tiangong 1 space module now orbiting 322 kilometers (200 miles) above the Earth. Two of the astronauts will live and work inside the module to test its life-support systems while the third will remain in the capsule to deal with unexpected emergencies. State media have said the mission will last about 10 days before the astronauts travel back to Earth in the capsule that will land on the Western Chinese grasslands with the help of parachutes. Success in docking — and in living and working aboard the Tiangong 1 — would smooth the way for more ambitious projects, such as sending a man to the moon, and add to China's international prestige in line with its growing economic prowess. If completed, the mission will put China alongside the United States and Russia as the only countries to have independently maintained space stations, a huge boost to Beijing's ambitions of becoming a space power. It already is in the exclusive three-nation club to have launched a spacecraft with astronauts on its own. The mission "demonstrates China's commitment to its long-term human spaceflight plan," said Joan Johnson-Freese, an expert on the Chinese space program at the U.S. Naval War College in Rhode Island. She said its success "will demonstrate the technological capabilities requisite for a future permanent space station." Still, that is some years away. The Tiangong 1 is only a prototype, and the plan is to eventually replace it with a permanent — and bigger — space station due for completion around 2020. The permanent station will weigh about 60 tons, slightly smaller than NASA's Skylab and about one-sixth the size of the 16-nation International Space Station. Analysts say China's exclusion from the ISS, largely on objections from the United States, was one of the key spurs for it to pursue an independent program 20 years ago, which reaches a high point with Saturday's launch. The three astronauts will conduct scientific and engineering tasks on Tiangong, or Heavenly Palace, which was put into orbit in September. Morris Jones, an Australian writer and space analyst, said they will also conduct experiments, likely including physiological tests on themselves, in anticipation of longer stays in future. China first launched a man into space in 2003 followed by a two-man mission in 2005 and a three-man trip in 2008 that featured China's first space walk. In November 2011, the unmanned Shenzhou 8, successfully docked with the Tiangong 1 by remote control — twice to show the durability of the system. While operating with limited resources, China's space program is a source of huge national pride and enjoys top-level political and military backing. This has left it largely immune from the budgetary pressures affecting NASA, although China doesn't say what it spends on the program. The selection of the first female astronaut is giving the program an additional publicity boost. State media have gushed this week about Liu, pointing out that she once successfully landed her plane after a bird strike disabled one of its engines. As with China's other female astronaut candidates, Liu is married and has a child, a requirement because the space program worries that exposure to space radiation may affect fertility. The Associated Press.   Newscribe : get free news in real time   Related post: China to launch 3 astronauts in new manned space flight docking

Moving to the next frontier of space programme

                      Image via Wikipedia

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MADE IN CHINA By CHOW HOW BAN

CHINA is moving in the right direction to build a 60-tonne space station around 2020.

On Nov 3, the unmanned Shenzhou 8 shuttle docked with Tiangong-1, which is China’s first space lab module, after travelling 343km in orbit.

The shuttle separated from the target spacecraft after 12 days and carried out its second docking on Nov 14. Two days later, Shenzhou 8 left Tiangong-1 and returned to Earth as scheduled.

News from the China Manned Space Engineering Office is that Tiangong-1 has continued its voyage at a height of 370km smoothly and transferred into a long-term operational mode.

The space lab module will wait for docking with the manned Shenzhou 9 and 10 sometime next year.

According to the office’s vice-director Wang Zhaoyao, during the flight of Shenzhou 8 its general biological experimental device functioned normally and 17 samples of Sino-Germany cooperative space life science experiments were recovered after the shuttle landed at the recovery site in Inner Mongolia.

He said Tiangong-1 had also carried out a series of experiments and tests as scheduled, including space-to-earth remote sensing exploration application experiment, space materials scientific experiment and space environment and physical detection tests.

“This space rendezvous and mission has fully realised its objective of ‘accurate entry into orbit, precise docking, stable assembly operation and safe return’.

“It marks a critical breakthrough for China’s space technology and set a milestone for our manned space development,” he told a press conference recently.

Wang said Tiangong-1, launched into orbit on Sept 29, was designed with a lifespan of more than two years and it would be well maintained until its following docking operations next year.

Under China’s space programme, after completing its first round of missions, Tiangong-1 will return to earth in 2013. It will be replaced by the larger Tiangong-2 and Tiangong-3 modules which will conduct more sophisticated space probes.



Tiangong-3 will probably be a 60-tonne full-size space station to be manned by astronauts.

The China’s Manned Space Engineering Office maintained that China is not working on the space station development alone and the country always welcomed other nations.

“We emphasise independent development but never said we want to develop in isolation. The development and operation of China’s space station are open to foreign colleagues and experts in the field on the principle of mutual respect and benefit, transparency and openness,” Wang said.

China has had fruitful space cooperation with Russia, Germany, France and other nations.

China would like to be involved in the building of the International Space Station together six other space agencies but because of various reasons, China remains excluded from the programme, he added.

He also refuted claims that China’s manned space programmes had military functions.

“We can say that none of the eight Shenzhou missions had direct military applications. But, we all know that space-related technological developments can be used in civilian and military sectors.

“For example, a communications satellite can be used for TV broadcasting and military communication. So it depends on what you use it for,” he added.

Wang hoped that critics would be responsible and fair when criticising China’s space programmes.

“The United States and some media have been criticising our space exploration programme and development saying is not transparent enough. First of all, they have to be fair in their comments.

“Last year, I accompanied Nasa administrator Charles Bolden for a tour of our space programme facilities, laboratories and launching centres in China. He was pleased on how transparent we were,” he said.

China’s space programme consists of three stages. Phase 1 saw the historic launch of the unmanned Shenzhou 1 shuttle in 1999 for missions to conduct space experiments. It was followed by the launch of Shenzhou 2, Shenzhou 3, Shenzhou 4, Shenzhou 5, Shenzhou 6 and Shenzhou 7.

The Shenzhou 7 mission, China’s third manned spacecraft, was the most historic when Chinese astronaut Zhai Zhigang became the first man from China to do a spacewalk on Sept 27, 2008. It marked a successful extra-vehicular activity (EVA) mission for China.

Phase 2 began with the launch of the Tiangong-1 space module. One of the main missions during this phase will be the docking of a manned space shuttle with the space lab.

The space programme administration will decide between Shenzhou 9 and 10 which one will be manned by China’s first female astronaut next year.

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China's space industry to see accelerated expansion over next 10 years

BEIJING, Nov. 4 (Xinhua) -- China's space industry will develop quickly over the next 10 years as the country pushes ahead with its space programs after its first space docking on Thursday.

Lab modules, a space station and 10 to 20 spaceships will be launched into space over the next 10 years, the Shanghai Securities News said Friday, but did not reveal its source.

The country will spend around 300 billion yuan (47.47 billion U.S. dollars) in manufacturing those craft, according to the newspaper.

There are 20 or so space voyages being planned in China, the newspaper reported, citing Wu Ping, spokeswoman of China's manned space program. The spaceflights will shore up demand for spacecraft manufacturing and launch services.

Space infrastructure has been included as one of China's strategic new industries which the government plans to foster over the next five years.

China started its three-stage manned space program in 1992.

In the first stage the country sent the astronaut, Yang Liwei, into space as part of the Shenzhou-5 mission in 2003. It was the first time for China to send a person into space.



Also as part of the initial stage, two astronauts conducted extravehicular activities during the Shenzhou-7 mission in 2008.

Now during the second stage China is focusing on space docking.

It achieved its first space docking in wee hours of Thursday when Tiangong-1 and Shenzhou-8 connected in space.

The next significant events will be the launching of Shenzhou-9 and -10, and one of the missions will be manned.

China will complete the second stage after it establishes its own space lab around 2016, Wu said.

In the third stage, China plans to develop and launch multiple space modules, with a goal of assembling a 60-tonne manned space station in 2020.

"The successful docking means China will enter a phase of massive production of spacecraft. The space economy is about to take off," according to Dongxing Securities.

Chinese Space Program

Roaming outer space in an airship, 1962

The succesful launching of the Shenzhou V, the Divine Vessel, on 15 October 2003, with taikonaut Yang Liwei on board, marked a giant leap forward in the Chinese space program that saw its origins in the 1960s. With this result, China joined the club of space-travelling nations that previously had been limited to the United States and the Soviet Union/Russian Federation. A previous Chinese launching , in 1970, had already brought a satellite into orbit that endlessly broadcast Dongfang hong (东方红, The East is Red), not the national anthem, but probably one of the best known Chinese tunes, eulogizing Mao Zedong. The success of this mission was solely ascribed to the genius of Mao Zedong Thought, which had guided the scientists and workers. In reality, Qian Xuesen (1911-2009), a rocket engineer formerly attached to the Jet Propulsion Lab in Pasadena, California, U.S., who had been expelled in the 1950s for suspected Communist sympathies, designed China's first missiles, earning him the accolade of being the father of the space program.

Little guests in the Moon Palace, early 1970s

In the early 1970s, the Chinese space program was brought to a halt as a result of the political turmoil of the Cultural Revolution. After Deng Xiaoping returned to power in the later 1970s, the program was revived in the 1980s. Clearly, the military industrial complex also benefitted greatly from this development, thus enabling the People's Liberation Army to demonstrate how well it responded to the political demands to modernize. Space also appealed to the popular imagination, as can be seen from the relatively abundant use of space-related imagery in posters published in the 1980s and 1990s.

Our past, present and future, 1987

We are in the process of creation, 1994

Under Jiang Zemin, however, the program, now named the 921 project, really took off in the 1990s. Successes in space exploration are very much seen as results of the CCP's support for advanced scientific projects that is part and parcel of his theory, the "Three Represents". The Party has appropriated the space mission rather as another justification for its continued rule, and attempts to use it even further to fan patriotism. In this patriotic discourse, space activities are another indication that demonstrate that China has shaken off the humiliation it has suffered in the past at the hands of the Western imperialist powers and is becoming a nation once more to be reckoned with.

Continue the struggle to realize the basic strategy and the historic duty of the Party, 2002

Moreover, space exploration and scientific research in general are part of the Party strategy to combat specific religious behavior that it sees and terms as superstition. Even in materials aimed at Falun Gong adherents, space imagery has been used in an attempt to bring them back into the fold.

Uphold science, eradicate superstition, 1999

Aside from the numerous benefits for the CCP's legitimacy, military developments and further space exploration, it stands to reason that the Shenzhou-mission will be exploited endlessly for propaganda purposes. Colonel Yang, for example, immediately was turned into an instant hero. According to media reports, 10.2 million sets of commemorative stamps have been issued. Unfortunately, no commemorative posters seem to have been published! In their absence, I reproduce some earlier artists' impressions of Chinese space travel below.

A garden in outer space, 1985

Heaven increases the years, man gets older, 1989

Aside from the political use of the space mission, its success really has struck a chord with the people. They feel proud and consider China's joining of the space family as another indication that the country is regaining some of the splendor and importance it had during its imperial past. As a result, a number of Chinese companies have included the Chinese conquest of space in their printed and television advertising. Jianlibao, a sports drink, already featured a Chinese taikonaut walking on the moon in one of its television commercials broadcast in early 2003.

Bringing his playmates to the stars, 1980

On 12 October 2005, China launched its second manned spacecraft, the Shenzhou VI, for a multi-manned, multi-day mission. Colonels Fei Junlong (mission commander) and Nie Haisheng (mission operator) embarked on a flight scheduled to take three to five days, during which they will undertake a number of scientific experiments. The launch is part of a more encompassing space program that includes space walks, the docking of a capsule with a space module and the launch of a permanent space lab. Moreover, in 2006, China started with the selection of women astronauts.

Warmly welcome the visit to Hong Kong of the nation's first taikonaut Yang Liwei and representatives from the manned space flight program, 2003

Sources:

Leonard David, Shenzhou Secrets: China Prepares for First Human Spaceflight
Matthew Forney, "Great Leap Skyward", Time Asia, vol. 162, n. 12 (29 September 2003

China Opens 'Space' Post Office on Docked Spacecraft

by Robert Z. Pearlman, collectSPACE.com Editor

Video still showing China's Shenzhou 8 spacecraft docked with the Tiangong 1 lab module on Nov. 3, 2011. CREDIT: China Central Television View full size image

China opened a new post office Thursday (Nov. 3) with a street address that is 213 miles (343 km) above the Earth.

Coinciding with the country achieving its first ever docking in space between the unmanned Shenzhou 8 spacecraft and Tiangong-1 space lab module, the "China Post Space Office" opened for business both on the ground in Beijing Aerospace City and, at least virtually, on board the newly established orbital complex.

Located on the ground near China's mission control, the Beijing Aerospace Command and Control Center (BACC), the new space post office even has its own zip code that extends into orbit: 901001.

Like any postal facility, the office will process letters and, in this case, e-mails, making it possible for the public to write Chinese astronauts, or "taikonauts," on the ground and in space. The space post office will offer domestic and international delivery as well as philatelic products, with more services expected to be introduced as China's aerospace industry eventually expands.

Yang Liwei, who in 2003 became China's first taikonaut in space, will serve as the post office's honorary chief.

A partnership between the China Post Group Corporation and the China Manned Space Engineering (CMSE) Office, the post office will also sell philatelic collectibles depicting China's major events in space. Among the first souvenirs offered are cancelled envelopes, or "covers," celebrating the Shenzhou 8 and Tiangong 1 docking complete with a commemorative postmark. [Photos From China's 1st Space Docking Mission]

China's postal service has issued other commemoratives for its country's previous space accomplishment but not through a dedicated "space" post office.

Shenzhou 8, which launched on Oct. 31 EDT, caught up with and docked at the Tiangong 1 space lab module on Nov. 2 EDT. The two unpiloted spacecraft will remain linked for 12 days before the Shenzhou detaches, backs away, and then approaches again. After the second demonstration of docking techniques, Shenzhou 8 will return to Earth.

In addition to demonstrating docking, Shenzhou 8 is also flying space life science experiments for both China and Germany.

The first docking established China as the third nation to achieve such a space feat with spacecraft designed to carry astronauts, after the United States and Russia. The orbital hookup marked a step forward toward China's plans to deploy a manned space station by 2020.

Russia has operated a makeshift post office on its space stations since the 1970s and continues to operate such a service on the International Space Station.

The Russian space office consists primarily of a postmark device that is only used in space. Cosmonauts use the ink stamp to mark letters and postcards as having flown in orbit, but also use it to mark other space souvenirs including crew notebooks, equipment and patches.

Follow collectSPACE on Facebook and Twitter @collectSPACE and editor Robert Pearlman @robertpearlman. Copyright 2011 collectSPACE.com. All rights reserved.

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