China is
paring down the list of astronauts to fly aboard its second manned spaceflight,
a two-person mission set to launch within weeks, state news reports said
Wednesday.
Several
two-astronaut teams have been selected from a candidate field of 14 former
fighter pilots, though the final decision will depend on how they perform in
upcoming tests, Zhang Qingwei, president of the China Aerospace Science and
Technology Corp., told the Shanghai Morning Post. The state run Xinhua
News Agency later reported the announcement.
"The launch
of Shenzhou 6 spacecraft could be in September or October," Zhang told the
Shanghai Morning Post, adding that a flag for the 2010 World Expo in Shanghai
will be included on the flight.
According
to earlier reports,
a Long March2F rocket is slated to launch two Chinese astronauts, also known as
"taikonauts," on a five-day to six-day mission to conduct experiments aboard
Shenzhou 6. One such experiment will apparently study the effects of
microgravity and space radiation on pig sperm, Xinhua reported.
The two-person
flight will follow the Oct. 15, 2003 launch
of Shenzhou 5, which carried astronaut Yang Liwei into orbit and made China one
of only three countries to independently launch a human into space. Russia and
the U.S. are the others.
Tucked
inside his Shenzhou 5 capsule, which is based on Russia's Soyuz spacecraft but
extensively modernized, Yang orbited Earth 14 times during his 21 1/2-hour
spaceflight before returning safely.
Chinese
space officials have said in the past that the Shenzhou flights will test
technologies that will lead toward docking and, ultimately, space station
hardware. The Chinese National Aerospace Administration hopes to land a probe
on the moon by 2010, according to past reports.
Preparing
for the future
As China
counts down to its second manned Shenzhou flight, plans are already underway
for an extended human spaceflight program.
In
Shanghai, construction began Tuesday on a new $160-million space center to be
devoted to researching, testing and producing rockets, manned spacecraft and
defense satellites, the Shanghai Space Bureau told Xinhua. Five research
institutes will be based at the new center's 183-acre site, the report stated.
Meanwhile,
China has also begun training its first group of female astronauts this year.
According
to Xinhua reports, 35 women between the ages of 17 and 20-years-old were
recruited for the country's female astronaut program.
At least four
years of university courses, as well as flight and science training, will be
required before any of the candidates fly, though Chinese space officials hope
to launch their first female astronauts by 2010.
"They will
embark on a space mission no later than 2010, working as flight commanders or
on-board engineers," Hu Shixiang, deputy chief of commander of China's manned
space program, told China Daily during the announcement.
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