The two astronauts aboard China's
Shenzhou 6 spacecraft spent their second day in orbit testing the stability of
their vehicle and will guide it through an orbital maneuver Friday, the
country's state media reported Thursday.
Shenzhou 6 astronauts Fei Junlong
and Nie Haisheng repeatedly opened and closed the doors between their
spacecraft's reentry and orbital modules - sometimes using exaggerated force -
to check the hatch's integrity, according to China's Xinhua News Agency.
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A schematic of Shenzhou 5 CREDIT: Simon
Zajc/Elizabeth Lagana. Click to enlarge.
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As part of the "anti-disturbance"
experiments, the astronauts also donned and doffed their bulky, 22-pound
(10-kilogram) spacesuits, and tested a condensation water extraction system
aboard their spacecraft, Xinhua said.
Zhang Shuting, deputy designer of
China's spacecraft system, reportedly told the news agency that, with the
experiments concluded, Shenzhou 6 is fully capable of enduring whatever actions
its crew performs inside.
Fei and Nie are expected to perform
an "orbital maintenance operation" early Friday (Beijing Time) to adjust their
spacecraft's flight around Earth, Xinhua said, adding that Shenzhou 6's
trajectory had deviated toward Earth slightly.
The two astronauts - also known as
"taikonauts" - launched
into space at 9:00 a.m. on Oct. 12 Beijing Time, about 9:00 p.m. EDT Oct.11
(0100 Oct. 12 GMT), from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China.
The mission is China's second manned spaceflight and its first to carry a
two-astronaut crew. Shenzhou
5, the nation's first manned flight, launched astronaut Yang
Liwei into orbit on Oct. 15, 2003.
New records
By mid-day Oct. 13 EDT, the
astronauts had circled the Earth about 23 times and spent more than 34 hours in
space, breaking China's earlier human spaceflight record. During Shenzhou
5, yang orbited the Earth a total of 14 times before landing
safely on the grasslands of Inner Mongolia 21 ˝ hours after launch.
Before launch, Shenzhou 6's
spaceflight was anticipated to be a five-day mission, though recent unconfirmed
state media reports have suggested it may end up to two days early, according
to the Shanghai Daily newspaper.
While Chinese space officials have
not released an official announcement of any changes in Shenzhou 6's Earth
return, the Shanghai Morning Post reported - citing an unnamed source -
that the spacecraft could land in Inner Mongolia by 6:00 a.m. Beijing Time
Saturday, the Daily said, adding that another newspaper suggested the
flight could land Friday.
Details emerge for Shenzhou 6,
future missions
Both astronauts were reportedly in
good health as they concluded their second day of flight operations.
Li Yongzhi, the spaceflight's chief
doctor, told Xinhua that the astronauts will fill out a questionnaire,
which details their orbital experiences such as sleep quality and other flight
aspects, that is coded to protect their privacy.
"Astronauts have their own privacy,"
Li told Xinhua. "We are responsible for keeping it secret for them."
Li said that the Shenzhou 6 crew had
eaten four meals and each slept once, in seven-hour shifts, by the end of their
second day, the news agency reported.
Some light was shed on the
day-to-day living requirements of China's astronauts in Li's discussion with Xinhua.
Li reportedly told the news agency
that Shenzhou 6's space toilet requires astronauts to use a soft plastic hose
and air pump system to collect waste in a sealed container for stowage.
Scientists also prepared a chewing
gum-like cleanser, edible toothpaste and a "tooth-cover" made from germ-free
gauze for Fei and Nie to use to clean their teeth, as well as special wipes and
moisturizer for body cleansing, Xinhua said.
Meanwhile, even as Fei and Nie orbit
Earth aboard Shenzhou 6, new details emerged in China's press Thursday
regarding the country's next two manned spaceflights.
According to the Shanghai Daily newspaper,
China's third manned mission - Shenzhou 7 - will launch in 2007 and is expected
to include a tethered spacewalk and a docking experiment.
The Daily quoted Han Hongyin, of the
Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology, who reportedly helped design the
propulsion system used by Shenzhou vehicles, on the launch projection.
"We will test space technology
individually before the launch of the country's first space station," Han told
the Daily, adding that at least two astronauts would fly aboard Shenzhou
7.
The Daily quoted Han as
saying that an actually docking between a Shenzhou vehicle and an unmanned
orbiter target would be reserved for a Shenzhou 8 mission, though did not
specify a potential launch target for that flight.
In a separate report, Zhang Bainan -
chief designer of China's spacecraft system - told Xinhua that the
Shenzhou vehicle to fly on the Shenzhou 8 mission will become the country's
final spacecraft design for future flights.
Minor changes may be required to
suite the specific needs of individual flights, but the basic shape, control
systems and data transmission protocols will be identical in spacecraft from
Shenzhou 8 onward, Xinhua reported.
Shenzhou 6 recovery rehearsals
complete
Shenzhou 6 flight officials also
conducted a final recovery drill in the Siziwang Banner region of Inner
Mongolia where the spacecraft and its two astronauts are expected to land,
state media reported.
Recovery teams conducted the third
and final landing drill Thursday night with six helicopters and 14 special
vehicles prepared to aid Shenzhou 6's post-landing operations, Xinhua
said.
On Wednesday, state media reported
that a herdswoman in the Otog Qi region of Inner Mongolia had recovered the
data recorder for the Long March 2F rocket that boosted Shenzhou 6 into orbit.
The flight recorder was designed to
separate from the rocket's second stage as it dropped back to the ground over
Otog Qi, said Zhu Habin, who heads a land emergency rescue team, according to Xinhua.
The herdswoman, Lian Hua, returned
the data recorder to Chinese space officials for later study, the news agency
said.
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