Friday 18 November 2011

Chinese spacecraft returns back


A Chinese spacecraft has returned to Earth after completing the nation's first docking manoeuvres in orbit.

The Shenzhou 8 capsule landed in the Gobi desert late on Thursday (Beijing time), the final moments of its descent having being slowed by parachute.

While in orbit, the unmanned Shenzhou mission had rendezvoused with China's mini spacelab, Tiangong-1. The success of the venture paves the way for astronauts to visit the lab next year.

Officials have indicated their desire to launch one, or perhaps two, manned missions in 2012. They have also said that 2012 might even see the country's first female astronaut.

Ultimately, China hopes the technological progress it is making in orbit will lead to the development of a fully fledged space station at the end of the decade.

Shenzhou 8 spent just under 17 days in orbit in total, the longest Shenzhou mission to date. Its goal had been to chase down and join with Tiangong-1, to demonstrate the technologies that will be essential if larger structures are to be assembled in space.

Beijing sees the Tiangong and Shenzhou dockings as the next phase in its step-by-step approach to acquiring the skills of human spaceflight operations. China hopes will culminate in the construction of a space station which would start taking shape before 2020.

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