China To Snap 4 Space Ships Into a Station 340
hackingbear writes "According to a report by Hong Kong newspaper Mingpao Daily (poor Google translation), quoting the Director of Jiuquan Launch Center, China is set to build a space station by snapping together four spaceships (Shenzhou 7, 8, 9, and 10), to be launched sequentially. Though other reports indicates that taikonauts abroad SZ 7 will return to Earth on September 28, the official said the ship will remain in the orbit to be docked with unmanned Shenzhou 8 and 9. Finally, the manned spaceship Shenzhou 10 will be launched and dock with the other three, completing the space station." A story at Space.com also briefly mentions Shenzhous 8 and 9 (with no mention of number 10), and adds that
China has selected its first spacewalker.
Its the orbit module that will remain in space (Score:5, Informative)
One feature of the Shenzhou capsule is that the orbit module (which detaches from the reentry module before reentry) can stay in function as a separate spacecraft.
Thus part of Shenzhou 7 will stay in space to form part of the station, and part of it will return the men home.
Re:but I thought??? (Score:3, Informative)
Sky lab a used booster rocket (Score:2, Informative)
Re:but I thought??? (Score:5, Informative)
Tibet? Tibet was peanuts. Ditto Iraq.
If we're talking deaths, let's talk about "the great leap forward" or the "cultural revolution." Now we're in the big leagues.
Re:independent Orbital/Hab module (Score:5, Informative)
Re:15 million dollar space suit ... (Score:4, Informative)
China is spending millions on space suits and America is spending millions on bailing out big corporations. Strange how that works, huh?
Full circle... from Wikipedia:
"AIG's history dates back to 1919, when Cornelius Vander Starr established an insurance agency in Shanghai, China."
Mir then (Score:3, Informative)
So they are after their own Mir station, so what? USSR has done that on multiple occasions (put together space capsules into some sort of a space station configuration.) It's just good engineering, but in this case it is not surprising at all, considering that Chinese space industry is sort of regurgitation Russian space industry.
Re:Taikonaut, cosmonaut and astronaut (Score:2, Informative)
Proper translation (Score:5, Informative)
I know this is Slashdot, but here T properly translated FA. Contents inside [] are mine.
Bad article (it's tautology -- blame the writer) and bad translation (blame me).
Space Lab Planned after Shenzhou-X Launch
Mr. Cui Ji-Jun, director of Jiuquan Space Launch Center, today told the media that the Shenzhou-VIII and -IX spaceships, which are scheduled after this year's manned Shenzhou-VII unit, will both be unmanned. The tenth of the series will again send astronauts into space and snap with an orbiting target. After that, work will be done to construct a space-based laboratory.
According to the Qilu Evening [a Shandon-based newspaper], Mr. Cui said the featured task of Shenzhou-VII will be a spacewalk. Three astronauts will be aboard: one will take the walk out of the ship, another one will assist him in the orbiting unit (of Shenzhou-VII), and the third in the return unit. Cui also explained the reason behind the decision of launching the spaceship at night. [However the news fails to tell what it is:(]
Shenzhou-VIII and -IX, Unmanned
Cui said after Shenzhou-VII gets launched, a Target unit will be sent to space, and later the VIII to X units. Shenzhou-VIII, unmanned, will go after the Target unit and join with it. The IX unit will do the same. Shenzhou-X, piloted by astronauts, will also join with the Target. After this is done, the first task will be the making of a space lab.
Re:Now taking bets ... (Score:3, Informative)
China GDP: $10.17 trillion
US GDP: $13.13 trillion
China Population: 1,321,851,888
US Population: 301,139,947
I guess if by "swimming in money" you mean "less than one quarter US GDP per capita", then yeah, they sure are!
Man, I've seen the crash tests [youtube.com] of their new "car". You know it's bad when the technicians are laughing in the background. They might have industrial capacity to spare but that means nothing when their products are crap, so they certainly don't have productive industrial capacity to spare.
That bit I can't argue with. They should be annexing Taiwan any day now, and then turning their ambition on the rest of asia.
Re:Taikonaut, cosmonaut and astronaut (Score:3, Informative)
"Transliteration" [merriam-webster.com] is not the same as "Translation" [merriam-webster.com].
Oh, and it's more like KOCMOHaBT.
Re:independent Orbital/Hab module (Score:5, Informative)
You may be jesting, I'm unsure, but the GP appears to be correct.
The Shenzhou spacecraft appears similar to the Russian Soyuz, but is different in dimensions (slightly larger and heavier) and does not seem to use any detailed parts copied from the Soyuz or built under license. Therefore although it follows the classic layout of the Soyuz, adopts many of the same technical solutions, and the re-entry vehicle has the same shape, it cannot be considered strictly a 'copy'.
www.astronautix.com [astronautix.com]
Re:independent Orbital/Hab module (Score:5, Informative)
you so obviously have not followed the development of China's manned spaceflight program and the Shen Zhou spacecraft.
"After China and Russia signed a space cooperation agreement in 1996, the two countries carried out very fruitful cooperation in docking system installations, model spaceships, flight control, and means of life support and other areas of manned space flight. Russia's experience in space technology development was and is of momentous significance as enlightenment to China."
http://www.spaceref.com/news/viewsr.html?pid=12687
As direct visual evidence, the Shen Zhou mold line is identical to Soyuz, uses APAS-89 and the spacesuits the crew wear are thread-for-thread copies of Russian "Sokol" suits. Even the toilet is in the same location. Shen Zhou uses modern, native systems and has advanced abilities (like leaving the OM on-orbit) but is definitely based on Soyuz.
The implication is not that China lacks indigenous spaceflight but that they are smart enough to partner with organizations that bring technology to them.
Re:Finally! (Score:3, Informative)
Re:No, No, No! (Score:3, Informative)
risking my nerd licence, I believe it was from "2010: Odyssey Two" by the late Arthur C. Clark. The part of the book describing the Chinese mission of launching a small manned spaceship towards Jupiter without enough fuel to travel back is one of the most exciting passages from a sci-fi (mostly sci) book I have ever read. The main characters who are also heading that way in a larger and more traditional spacecraft figure that the Chinese ship will use the gravitational pull of Jupiter to slow down, then land on the moon Europa where they presume to refuel for the trip back. Not going to give up more due to spoilers for those not familiar with the story. Please read it.
Re:Voltron! (Score:5, Informative)
Heck, I got tagged "Informative" for pointing out that we aren't speaking Russian.
Oh no, you are using PPP values! (Score:3, Informative)
Oh no, you are using PPP values! You! You! Gah! ...Why don't people learn!? You use GDP nominal, as in real money, to measure the economic power of different countries.
With GDP nominal the figures are:
In real money terms China has the economic power equaling Germany that has GDP nominal of 3,32 trillion.
WTF is wrong with you Americans anyway? (Score:5, Informative)
The linked article simply discusses China's gradual but steadily improving manned space programme. It says nothing about what the Chinese call their Astronauts, Tibet, Iraq, or about NASA or the shuttle. Why on earth do you people have to diss any nation that does anything positive be it Chinese, Indian, Russian or European?
To me, it comes across as pure envy that someone else is doing things that you used to consider your own territory.
There is nothing wrong with the American space programme and it has a long and proud tradition, and folks like the ones making the Falcon rocket look to be making space reachable by private people in the future.
So why the pressing need to insult the Chinese?
Re:Taikonauts? (Score:2, Informative)
Re:Oh no, you are using PPP values! (Score:4, Informative)
Yes you would! :)
PPP stands for Purchasing Power Parity. PPP relies on a theory that identical goods should have the same price. In PPP what you are looking is the exchange rates of different countries purchasing power. These exchange rates are calculated by in example building baskets of different goods, items, etc.. and calculating price differences between countries. In example if you have 500k dollars, in China you get a mansion, in USA you get a McMansion and in Europe you get a villa: you have differences on what your money can buy. Now these differences, exchange rates, are used to adjust GDP, meaning that the GDP of China goes up relatively much, the GDP of US gets up too and the GDP of Europe goes down. The weak point of PPP is that there just aren't identical goods in the real world: you have different regulations on different things in every country, different workers legislations, etc.. In principle PPP is a sound thing, but in practice it just is horrible approximation.
Now, GDP nominal, is more or less the real money, the real value, that the economy is producing. GDP PPP tells more about the living standards of normal people, the GDP nominal tells the raw power of the economy as it is based on the actual value of production. When measuring the power of different countries, GDP nominal is the way to go.
Not quite true (Score:5, Informative)
Initial design work on Skylab began in 1966, 7 years before it was launched, as part of the Apollo Applications Program. The original plan was to use the second stage of a Saturn-1B rocket, which was actually the same as the third stage of the Saturn V. Because of the smaller capacity of the Saturn 1B, it would be a fully fueled stage with access points added so the first crew could enter the empty stage in orbit and convert the interior, which only had minimal gear at the time of launch. This was called the "wet lab" configuration.
The limitations and complexity of that approach led to a switch to the Saturn V, launching its converted third stage dry and much more fully outfitted (which they could now afford to do since it was full of cryogenic hydrogen and oxygen), including a large docking module at one end, plus all the necessary life-support gear. A large optical telescope was also attached. Three manned missions ultimately were conducted on board Skylab.
The Chinese should be able to similarly reboost this mini space station and replenish consumables each time they visit. However, this will be a very small station. The total interior volume of four Shenzhou orbital modules is barely more than 10% of the interior volume of Skylab and about 1/3 the size of the Soviet Salyut stations. It will also have limited amounts of consumables and power. It won't afford them a lot of versatility.
Re:And it cost them how much? (Score:3, Informative)
Actually, after Japan did it, Taiwan did the same, and they were also considered cheap crap in the beginning. Now they're considered high tech and produce first-class stuff.
Then after Taiwan did it, Korea did it. People used to laugh at Goldstar and their crappy TVs. Then Goldstar changed name to LG and they're one of the market leaders.
So yeah, it's possible that China will do the same, especially considering the pure volume they are producing and how much they're investing in engineering and education.