A third nation will enter the manned spaceflight launch league in the autumn, says China Great Wall Industry Corporation (CGWIC).
The People's Republic of China will launch one or two 'taikonauts' into orbit aboard the fifth Shen Zhou spacecraft - variously translated as 'Divine Craft', 'Vessel of the Gods' or 'Divine Mechanism' - on a CGWIC Long March 2F booster from Jiuquan.
China became the fifth nation, after the Soviet Union, USA, France and Japan, to fly its own satellite in April 1970 when Dong Fang Hong 1 was launched by a Long March 1 booster. Since then, China has launched a series of science and national communications satellites. The manned spaceflight plan, called Project 921, was established in 1992.
Shen Zhou is similar to but larger than the Russian Soyuz spacecraft, with a forward orbital module, descent capsule and instrument section. The main differences from the Soyuz are that the orbital module is cylindrical, has its own pair of solar panels and can be fitted with a docking system. Experiment pallets can be mounted onto the outside.
The orbital module can also be left in orbit to fly independently as an automatic mini-space station. Indeed, by docking two Shen Zhou spacecraft together, with a full complement of three crew in each, a national space station could be operated, with the two modules being left docked after the crews had returned to Earth.
Ambitious
The Chinese links with Russia include the training of two taikonauts at the Star City centre. They are now part of a 14-strong astronaut corps.
Shen Zhou weighs 16,740lb (7,600kg) with a total length of 28ft (8m) and solar panel span of 64ft (19m). The rear instrument module with engine weighs 6,600lb (3,000kg), the 6.5ft (2m) long, 8ft (2.5m) diameter re-entry capsule 6,830lb (3,100kg) and the 7ft (3.2m) by 4.8ft (2.2m) orbital module, 3,300lb (1,500kg).
The first Shen Zhou spacecraft was launched into orbit by the uprated Long March 2E booster, redesignated the 2F and equipped with a launch escape system, on 20 November 1999. The spacecraft's descent capsule was safely recovered after a flight of 21h 11 min and 14 orbits. The orbital module remained in space.
The capsule's landing was not perfect and might have injured a crewman. The next flight was delayed until 9 January 2001 and carried a monkey, dog and rabbit to test the life support systems. Shen Zhou 2 also performed three orbital manoeuvres and landed seven days later. It is understood but not confirmed that the capsule was badly damaged. The orbital module remained operational in space.
This mission was the most ambitious space science flight conducted by China, including more than 60 experiments in life sciences, materials processing and crystal growth. The craft also carried cosmic ray and particle detectors. The experiments were carried in the descent capsule and orbital module and mounted on pallets on the orbital module and instrument section.
The third Shen Zhou flight was launched on 25 March 2002 and was highly successful, leading project officials to launch one more - successful - unmanned flight in late 2002 and the first manned flight in October or November, with Shen Zhou 5.
Source: Flight Daily News
