China set to send first crew to new space station Thursday
The three members of the first crew to be sent to China’s space station say they’re eager to get to work making their home for the next three months habitable, setting up testing and experiments and preparing for a series of spacewalks.
The three met with reporters Wednesday from inside a germ-free glassed-in room, hours before they were to blast off on Thursday morning. Unsurprisingly, all said they had complete confidence in the mission, which carries special political meaning for the ruling Communist Party as it prepares to celebrate its centenary next month.
Thursday’s launch begins the first crewed space mission in five years for an increasingly ambitious space program. China has sent 11 astronauts into space since becoming the third country to so so on its own in 2003, and has sent orbiters and rovers to the moon and Mars.
Beijing doesn’t participate in the International Space Station, largely due to U.S. concerns over the Chinese space program’s secrecy and its military connections. Despite that, foreign science missions and possibly foreign astronauts are expected to visit the Chinese station in the future, China Manned Space Agency Assistant Director Ji Qiming told reporters at Jiuquan.
“Outer space is the common wealth of people all over the world, and exploring the universe is the shared cause of all mankind,” Ji said.
https://apnews.com/article/china-technology-business-science-15643befa1056aa5b8181ca83b98248c