iTWire - Zhai Zhigang to become first Chinese spacewalker

Zhai Zhigang to become first Chinese spacewalker

by William Atkins
Thursday, 18 September 2008
Page 1 of 2 ! China announced on Tuesday, September 16, 2008, that Colonel Zhai Zhigang, of the People’s Liberation Army, will walk in space for the first time in the fledgling Chinese manned space program. Zhai Zhigang, along with Liu Boming and Jing Haipeng, will be onboard the Shenzhou VII spacecraft when it is scheduled to launch, through a Long March 2F rocket, in the evening of Thursday, September 25, 2008 at 2110 local time (1310 UTC). The launch will occur at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center (JSLC) in the northwest part of China's Gansu province. The Chinese spaceport is located about 960 miles (1,600 kilometers) from Beijing. The mission, directed by the China National Space Administration (CNSA), is the third manned space mission for China. The 68-hour mission will include the releasing of a small satellite with a CCD (charge-coupled device) stereo camera that will broadcast the approximate 40-minute scheduled spacewalk of Zhigang. The event is scheduled for either the afternoon of September 26 or 27. The Chinese are expected to broadcast the entire spacewalk live, with cameras positioned both inside and outside of the spacecraft. More details about the spacewalk are found on page two. << First page < 1 2 Next page > Last page - Post your comment >>

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