CHINA SENDS ITS FIRST CIVILIAN INTO SPACE AS SHENZHOU-16 LIFTS OFF

Tue 30 May 2023:

On Tuesday, China launched the Shenzhou-16 mission to the space station for its second in-orbit crew rotation, bringing in a new era in the country’s ambitious space program by launching the first civilian astronaut into orbit.

The three Shenzhou-16 astronauts blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, in the desert of China’s Gansu province on Tuesday morning.

The launch was a “complete success” and the “astronauts are in good condition”, said Zou Lipeng, the centre’s director.

The crew will overlap briefly with the three astronauts currently on board the Tiangong station, who will then return to Earth after completing their six-month mission.

According to the China Manned Space Agency, the crew will stay aboard the Tiangong for around five months, during which they will conduct scientific experiments, including in “high-precision space time-frequency systems”, general relativity, and into the origin of life.

Leading the crew is commander Jing Haipeng, who is on his fourth mission. Also on board are engineer Zhu Yangzhu and Beihang University professor Gui Haichao, the first Chinese civilian in space.

China, which plans to launch a crewed mission to the moon before 2030, wants to expand the space outpost, with the next module slated to dock with the current T-shaped space station to create a cross-shaped structure.

China built the space station after it was excluded from the International Space Station in 2011, largely due to concerns from the United States over the Chinese space programme’s ties with the People’s Liberation Army.

China has sought to open up its station to collaboration with international partners, including by hosting experiments from other countries.

Beijing for years has been leveraging of its rising prowess as a global space power to offer partnerships and development opportunities to other countries its as part of its diplomacy.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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