Special Report: Third Manned Space Mission
Backgrounder: Chinese footprints in
outer space
Facts and Figures: Shenzhou-7
spacecraft
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The video grab taken on Sept. 26, 2008
at the Beijing Space Command and Control Center in Beijing, China, shows
Chinese astronaut Liu Boming unpacking and assembling the indigenous
Feitian extra-vehicular activity (EVA) suit in Shenzhou-7. Astronauts
aboard the Shenzhou-7 spacecraft, China's third manned spaceship, began to
assemble the suit and test its obturation and functions at 10:20 a.m.
Friday in preparation for the first spacewalk. (Xinhua/Zha
Chunming)
Photo
Gallery>>> |
BEIJING, Sept. 26 (Xinhua) -- Astronauts aboard the
Shenzhou-7 spacecraft, China's third manned spaceship, began to unpack and
assemble the indigenous Feitian extra-vehicular activity (EVA) suit at 10:20
a.m. Friday in preparation for the first spacewalk.
As of 11:51 a.m., the spaceship which blasted off at
9:10 p.m. Thursday at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the northwestern Gansu
Province, has made 11 orbits around the earth as scheduled.
Physical conditions of the three astronauts who are
in duty shift, all stay normal.
Zhai Zhigang and Liu Boming took on assembling in the
orbital module while Jing Haipeng stayed in the re-entry module to keep an eye
on the vessel operation.
Feitian, which literally means flying the sky, has 10
layers and weighs about 120 kilograms. The domestically-made suit costs 30
million yuan (about 4.4 million U.S. dollars), and takes up to 15 hours for
astronaut to assemble and put on.
According to Wu Bin, director of the astronaut
training research institute under the China Astronaut Training Center, the
astronauts have to unpack the suit which was fixed on the interiolwall of the
orbital module. The unpacking procedure can be broken down to 12 steps, of which
every step will be implemented with the help of the pincers.
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The video grab taken on Sept. 26, 2008
at the Beijing Space Command and Control Center in Beijing, China, shows
Chinese astronaut Liu Boming unpacking and assembling the indigenous
Feitian extra-vehicular activity (EVA) suit in Shenzhou-7. Astronauts
aboard the Shenzhou-7 spacecraft, China's third manned spaceship, began to
assemble the suit and test its obturation and functions at 10:20 a.m. on
Friday in preparation for the first spacewalk. (Xinhua/Zha
Chunming)
Photo
Gallery>>> |
After assembling, the replaceable parts including the
purifier, oxygen bottle, batteries and remote control instruments will be
installed on the suit.
The astronaut will have to adjust the size of the
suit and test its obturation and functions after donning the suit. The procedure
will be aided by another astronaut to ensure everything goes well, Wu said.
Since the astronaut will grew "fatter" after putting
on the bulky suit, the re-entry module is built with an enlarged door of
850-millimeter-diameter, deputy chief designer of the spacecraft system Qi
Yufeng told Xinhua.
A commander-in-chief post was for first time set up
in the Shenzhou-7, which will be assigned to the No.1 astronaut, who will walk
into the space. He will be assisted during Saturday's spacewalk by the No. 2
astronaut, who will stay in the orbital module during the process. The No. 3
astronaut will stay in the re-entry module.
Yang Liwei, who piloted China's maiden space flight
in 2003 has said the intensive psychological shock would be unavoidable for the
Shenzhou-7 astronaut when he moved out of the capsule.
Since the operation was highly automatic, it was the
psychological factor other than the manual operation that decided the success of
the mission, Yang said. Psychology would affect the mission greatly notably when
space walking, which was heavily relied on the astronaut's self-initiative.
The No. 2 astronaut will wear a different space suit,
the Orlan space suit provided by a Russian supplier.
According to a contract signed in April, 2004, a
Russia company provides three Orlan suits, two low-pressure training suits, four
suits for underwater training, and four sets of docking systems in the craft.
The Chinese side is responsible for providing power and communications equipment
for some of the EVA suits.
"The active collaboration of the two countries in
areas like astronauts training and the development of spacecraft have boosted
the advancement of China's manned space industry," Wang Zhaoyao, spokesman with
China's manned space program has said.
If Shenzhou-7 mission is successful, China will
become the third country after United States and Russia to accomplish a
spacewalk, a crucial capacity if China is to have its own permanent space
station.
The space environment forecast center under the China
Academy of Sciences said Friday that the space environment was sound and safe
for the spacewalk between Sept. 26-28.
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The video grab taken on Sept. 25, 2008
at the Beijing Space Command and Control Center in Beijing, China, shows
Chinese taikonauts in the return module of the Shenzhou-7 spacecraft.
(Xinhua Photo)
Photo Gallery>>> |
BEIJING, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Three Chinese
taikonauts who blasted off on the Shenzhou-7 spacecraft told the ground control
center that they felt "physically sound" in the first few minutes of the flight.
The space voyager took off at 9:10 p.m. on Thursday
from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center with leaders including President Hu
Jintao present seeing off the taikonauts -- Zhai Zhigang, Liu Boming and Jing
Haipeng. Full story
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The Long-March II-F carrier rocket
carrying the Shenzhou-7 spaceship blasts off from the launch pad at the
Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China's Gansu Province, on
21:10 p.m., Sept. 25, 2008. (Xinhua/Li Gang)
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JIUQUAN, Gansu, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- China launched
its third manned spacecraft on Thursday with three astronauts on board to
attempt the country's first-ever space walk.
The spaceship Shenzhou-7 blasted off on a Long March
II-F carrier rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the northwestern
Gansu Province at 9:10 p.m. after a breathtaking countdown to another milestone
on China's space journey. Full story
JIUQUAN, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- All three Chinese
taikonauts have entered the Shenzhou-7 spacecraft at 18:28 p.m. Thursday, about
three hours ahead of its scheduled launch.
They then plugged their spacesuits to the re-entry module
of the craft and checked the communication system with the ground control after
reviewing the operation manual of the spaceship. Full story
JIUQUAN, Gansu, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- Chinese
President Hu Jintao met with Shenzhou-7 taikonauts (astronauts) Zhai Zhigang,
Liu Boming and Jing Haipeng here Thursday.
China's third manned spacecraft Shenzhou-7 will blast
off from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China. The launch window
was set between 9:07 p.m. to 10:27 p.m (1307 GMT to 1427 GMT). Full story
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Chinese taikonauts (R-L) Liu Boming,
Zhai Zhigang and Jing Haipeng attend the setting-out ceremony at the
taikonauts' apartment compound of the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in
northwest China's Gansu Province, Sept. 25, 2008. China counted down
Thursday to its third manned space mission Shenzhou-7 which will include
the country's first ever space walk.(Xinhua Photo)
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Gallery>>> |
JIUQUAN, Gansu, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- The Jiuquan
Satellite Launch Center held a ceremony Thurday afternoon for the three
taikonauts due to board the Shenzhou-7 spacecraft before the startof the
mission.
The ceremony was held at the taikonauts' apartment
compound, called Wentiange, or "Ask-the-Sky Pavillion," at the launch center. Full story
