Thisis the second test flight of the Shenzhou (meaning God Vessel, Divine Shipor Magic Vessel). The maiden voyage of the craft was November 19, 1999,looping around the Earth 14 times before it landed under parachute withinInner Mongolia, 21 hours after liftoff.Chinaspace watchers expect a more rigorous testing of the Shenzhou this trip.
A longertrek would put the Shenzhou 2 -- a forward orbital section, a descent moduleand a rear instrument/propulsion module -- through an extensive checkoutwhile whisking through space. Pairs of solar panels adorn the forward andrear sections of the Shenzhou.
Oneor two more pilotess tests are expected before a human-rated Shenzhou isready to take flight. Published reports a few months ago stated that China'sfirst generation of astronauts are now undergoing intensive training.
Byrocketing humans into orbit, China would enter an elite club. It wouldbecome the third nation after Russia in 1961 and the United States in 1962to place a person into Earth orbit.
"Iexpect that when it begins manned operations, the Shenzhou program willprogress relatively quickly compared with other Chinese programs, and alsowith the early years of Soviet and U.S. manned flights," said noted spaceanalyst, Phillip Clark, of Molniya Space Consultancy in Great Britain.
IfChina propels a multi-passenger crew into the cosmos the first time out,however, that would be a first. Both Russia and America flew only single-seatercraft in the premier days of each country's human spaceflight programs.
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TheShenzhou appears similar in design to the Russian-built Soyuz capsule.However, the Chinese spacecraft is physically larger than Soyuz. It cancarry two to three, perhaps four people, Clark said. "The Chinese are startingwith what are 'second-generation spacecraft' compared with the Sovietsand the United States," he said.
A Shenzhouvehicle toting passengers into orbit, depending on how well pilotess flightsgo, could come as soon as late next year, Clark told SPACE.com.
Ultimately,China appears headed toward orbiting its own space station.
BoostingChinese taikonauts into Earth orbit is also boosterism in the form of nationalprestige, Clark said. "But from the time that the Chinese started to talkabout manned programs about a decade ago, it has always been in the contextof having their own space station," he said.
Greatleap upward
Accordingto orbital data gleaned by the network of sensors operated by the U.S.Space Command in Colorado Springs, Colorado, the newly orbited Shenzhouis following a path virtually identical to its 1999 predecessor.
"Withthe flight lasting for a week, we can expect that the spacecraft will bedemonstrating a maneuvering capability," Clark said.
Reportsthat animals are on board the Shenzhou, Clark said, show that China istesting the spacecraft's environmental system. That would be a key stepfor future humans, and also to see firsthand how specimens aboard readaptto full gravity, he said.
MarciaSmith, a space analyst for the Congressional Research Service here, saidthe Shenzhou 2 flight is "another step forward for China in its long questto put humans in space."
"Itis not clear when future human missions into space might occur," Smithsaid.
Smithsaid that China has been talking since the 1970s about putting people intospace. "It has taken them a long time to get this far," she said.
Inregards to future space cooperation between China and the United States,Smith said that any joint work is more tied to the overall political relationshipsbetween the two nations, rather than technical skills shown in orbitingShenzhou spacecraft. "It's not a ticket you need to get into a partnership,"she said.
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