Sources from the China Manned Space Flight Engineering Office
said that the Shenzhou VII?space flight, China's third manned
space flight, would be launched in 2008 with the mission of a space
walk.
Wang Zhougui, director of the office, revealed in a lecture in
that the development of China's space program would take three
steps in the near future: First, Shenzhou VII?will carry
astronauts to space for a space walk in 2008; second, Shenzhou VIII
will fly into space with the more significant mission of a space
dock; and third, China will establish her own space station, third
only after the United States and former Soviet Union.
According to Wang, compared with the Shenzhou
VI?astronauts, who never walked out of their spacecraft during
their 5-day space travel, Shenzhou VII?astronauts would try to
get out in space to "take a breath" of the space air, according to
a report in Shanghai Morning Post.
"The space walking astronauts will walk in the self-made space
suit and do some space experiments. Our initial plans are to have 1
or 2 astronauts walk in space for about half an hour," said Wang,
adding that the exact walking time would be finally fixed depending
on the mission progressing at that time.
Shenzhou VIII, with the mission of a space dock, will be
launched around 2009 to 2011. Wang continued to explain that the
space docks refer to those between two space flights or between a
space flight and a space capsule.
"We will be able to carry out space aid, space cooperation, and
other high-level space missions once we succeed in space docks,"
Wang said, forecasting a fine future for China's manned space
program.
(Chinadaily.com.cn February 25, 2006)