It may have
been one small nudge for a man, but all of China exulted when its first
spacewalker floated outside a spacecraft for the first time.
Chinese
astronaut Zhai Zhigang, a 42-year-old fighter pilot, spent 20 minutes walking
in space on Saturday while clad in his Feitian spacesuit, a Chinese space
garment whose name translates to "fly the sky." Zhai and crewmates Liu Boming
and Jing Haipeng, both 42, launched
into space aboard their Shenzhou 7 spacecraft on Sept. 25 on a three-day
mission to test the Feitian spacesuit and perform China's first-ever spacewalk.
During the
spacewalk, Zhai floated outside the Shenzhou 7 spacecraft via the three-segment
vehicle's orbital module. The spacewalk was broadcast live on Chinese
television, and in this view Zhai can be seen waving a Chinese flag while Liu
looks on.
Liu wore a
Russian-built Orlan spacesuit during the excursion. He passed Zhai tools and
stowed a test sample retrieved by Zhai from the Shenzhou 7's hull. Jing
remained inside the Shenzhou 7's descent module.
Known as
taikonauts in China, the Shenzhou 7 spaceflyers returned
to Earth early Sunday, capping their successful
mission with a flawless landing.
China's
Feitian spacesuit reportedly cost 30 million yuan (about $4.4 million). It has
10 layers of insulation, weighs about 265 pounds (120 kg), and takes up to 15
hours to assemble and don, the official Chinese news agency Xinhua
reported.
China is
the third country after Russia and the U.S. to successfully launch astronauts into
space. Shenzhou 7 marked the country's third manned spaceflight.
— SPACE.com Staff
Credit: AP Photo/CCTV via APTN.
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