- BEIJING (Reuters) - China
will launch a fourth unmanned spacecraft later this year in what will likely
be the last test before its sends its first astronaut into orbit around
the earth, the official Xinhua news agency said on Sunday.
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- The program to launch the craft, known as Shenzhou IV
or "Divine Vessel," before the year end was progressing "smoothly,"
Xinhua quoted Hu Hongfu, executive deputy general manager of the China
Aerospace Science and Technology Corp, as saying.
-
- China would launch a manned craft "as soon as possible
and as long as the safety of the astronauts was assured," Xinhua quoted
Hu as saying at an international aerospace exposition in the southern Chinese
city of Zhuhai.
-
- Xinhua gave no further details. China has closely guarded
the progress of its manned spaceflight program, and previous test launches
have been publicized only after their successful completion.
-
- Shenzhou III took flight in March. Bearing a mannequin,
the capsule was launched from a space center in the central province of
Gansu and touched down in the northern region of Inner Mongolia.
-
- China's space program is also a big issue of national
pride as the country -- long mired in poverty but growing fast after two
decades of market-oriented reforms -- seeks a place on the world stage
alongside great powers.
-
- China aims to become the third nation with the capability
of putting people in space. The Soviet Union first accomplished the feat
in 1961, with the United States following the next year.
-
- Chinese astronauts have been dubbed "taikonauts,"
taken from "taikong," the Chinese word for "space."
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