While China
this week hailed the successful landing of Shenzhou 6, its second manned spacecraft the mission is far from over.
The
spacecraft's orbital module, which served as both a living area and space
laboratory for Shenzhou
6 astronauts Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng, will continue to circle Earth
for at least six more months after firing its engines to reach a higher orbit,
China Central Television (CCTV) reported Thursday.
"This is an
important event that will test the capability of the orbital module, to keep it
working for a long time in space," Liu Junze, the aircraft controlling office
director at Beijing Aerospace Command and Control Center, told CCTV. "It will
also lay the foundations for space station designs in the future."
Shenzhou
6's orbital module - which uses solar panels to generate power - fired its
engines twice to boost itself into a 220-mile (355-kilometer) orbit, state
media reported.
Fei and Nie
landed
inside Shenzhou 6's descent module on Oct. 17 in China, concluding a five-day
flight to conduct experiments in Earth orbit, test new spaceflight hardware and
showcase its space program as a source of national pride.
"I feel
that the whole project was a complete success," Nie said in a CCTV interview after
the flight. "There's no doubt about that."
Orbital
operations
China's
Shenzhou manned spacecraft are based on Russia's three-part Soyuz vehicles, but
are heavily modernized and modified to serve the needs of Chinese astronauts
and scientists.
Like the
Soyuz, Shenzhou vehicle carry propulsion, orbital and reentry modules, the
latter of which is the only component to return to Earth. But unlike Soyuz
vehicles, Shenzhou orbital modules carry their own engines and solar panels and
can remain in orbit for months at a time. The orbital
module for Shenzhou
5 - China's first manned spaceflight - also circled Earth for several
months.
According
to CCTV reports, the Shenzhou 6 orbital module - like its predecessors - will fly
through space to perform a series of experiments.
"This is a
different craft than the Soyuz, and it has a different order of capability," Dean
Cheng, a China space specialist with the CNA Corp. in Arlington,
Virginia, told SPACE.com of
the orbital module's flight. "It would be interesting to see what [they] are
testing out. Is it science experiments, is it observations, or are they seeing
how long the batteries last?"
China has
tested a series of orbital modules during its Shenzhou spaceflights culminating
with the first experiments
conducted by astronauts inside the compartment during Shenzhou 6.
"I think
the technical comparison has borne that they did take a proven design and made
it their own, they're very upfront about it," said Joan Johnson-Freese, chair
of National Security Studies at the U.S. Naval War College in Newport, Rhode
Island, of the shared lineage between Shenzhou and Soyuz spacecraft in an
earlier interview. "A Hummer and Volkswagen Bug have different designs, but
they share basic parameters. They all have four wheels."
Chinese
space officials have said their efforts are leading toward an eventual manned
space station, as well as an unmanned Moon probe set for a 2010 launch.
"We plan to
conduct a spacewalk around 2007; and launch target fliers and manage rendezvous
and docking in orbit by 2009-2012," said Tang Xianming, director of the China Manned
Space Engineering Office, said during a post-flight press conference according
to China Daily. "The final stage is to set up a permanent space lab and
build a space engineering system."
The
potential to link up with orbital modules on future flights could provide China
with an ad-hoc space station as it pushes toward building larger orbiting
structures, space experts said.
"It's a
small space station on the cheap," Johnson-Freese said.
According
to state media and Associated Press reports,
Tang said China's Shenzhou 6 spaceflight cost about $110 million (900 million
yuan) out of the $2.3 billion (19 billion yuan) the country has spent to date
on its manned spaceflight program.
In the
public eye
Cheng said
that China's publicity with the Shenzhou 6 flight - which was broadcast live
during launch
and landing - shows an understanding of national interest in its spaceflight
efforts. Spaceflight officials unveiled a few of the novelty items - including
foodstuffs, student paintings and national and Olympic flags - that flew into
orbit aboard the spacecraft.
"There is a
healthy appetite for space-related items," Cheng said, adding that the details
of many of Shenzhou 6's orbital module experiments are likely still remain to
be released. "I think the Chinese are feeling their way out on how to be more
open."
Instead of
the days of silence
that followed the Shenzhou 5 flight, which carried astronaut Yang Liwei on a
14-orbit, 21 1/2 -hour flight, the Shenzhou 6 crew were prominently featured on
Chinese television and print media.
"At first,
we were so excited and we had a lot of work to do, but then we had to catch up
with a lot of sleep later," Nie said on CCTV one day after landing. "We wanted
to accumulate as much information and experience as possible."
Nie said he
felt the entire flight was a success and that sleep came easier in the later half
of the spaceflight and in the initial days in orbit, CCTV reported.
"Both
of us felt great upon touchdown," Fei said in the CCTV interview. "We remained
entirely conscious throughout the landing. We had great close coordination in
cutting the parachute. We felt the landing was perfect."
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