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3 A Brief History of Space Flight
by launching the unmanned spacecrafts Shenzhou-2, Shenzhou-3 and Shenzhou-4.
On October 15, 2003, the Chinese first manned spacecraft, Shenzhou-5 with the
astronaut Liwei Yang, was successfully launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch
Center by using Long March-2F rocket, flew 14 circles around the Earth, and safely
return the ground, with the flight duration of 21 h and 23 min. It is a symbol that
China is the third country with the capability of carrying out manned earth orbit
flight independently after the USSR (later Russia) and the US. At the time, the first
step development plan was completed successfully. From 2005 to 2017, there were
six spacecrafts Shenzhou series, two space laboratories Tiangong series and a cargo
spaceship Tianzhou-1 launched sequentially, Among which, the Shenzhou-6 carried
two astronauts to conduct the flight test with 76 circles around the Earth, lasting
4 days, 2 h and 33 min; three astronauts onboard the Shenzhou-7 carried out the tests
of extravehicular activity, a small satellite-accompanying flight and other technologies; the Shenzhou-8 unmanned spacecraft carried out autonomously the rendezvous
and docking test with the Tiangong-1, which is an important milestone for the China’s
manned space flight project; both the Shenzhou-9 and Shenzhou-10 that carried with
three-astronaut crew each (including one female astronaut each) were docked with
the Tiangong-1 to conduct many space experiments, which marked the successful
completion of the second step development plan; in October 2016, two astronauts
taken by the Shenzhou-11 were launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center
to enter the Tiangong-2 launched in September, and lived in space for 33 days to
complete a series of scientific and technical test tasks; in April 2017, the Tianzhou-1
was launched from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center, Hainan Province, China,
by using the Long March-7 rocket, and docked with the Tiangong-2 to first carry out
the in-orbit filling propellant test. So far as 2020, China is implementing the third
step development plan of manned space flight.
3.5.4 Manned Landing on the Moon
The manned landing on the Moon is the greatest space flight activity of humanity
in the twentieth century, which shows the great power of human conquering nature.
Ironically, it is also the product of the Space Race between the United States and
the Soviet Union. In the wake of the first satellite launched by the USSR, the US
quickly set up the NASA to concentrate the national advantageous resources and try
to seize the strategic commanding point in the field of manned space flight. However,
as the Soviet cosmonaut Gagarin successfully completed his first space mission, the
American dream was frustrated once again. As a result, the U.S. government had to
make new choice. On May 25, 1961, President Kennedy made an address to Congress,
and officially proposed an ambitious goal: “landing a man on the Moon by the end
of this decade and returning him safely to the Earth”. Shortly thereafter, the NASA
initiated the well-known as Apollo Program, whose objectives are: to establish the
technology to meet other national interests in space; to achieve preeminence in space
3 A Brief History of Space Flight
by launching the unmanned spacecrafts Shenzhou-2, Shenzhou-3 and Shenzhou-4.
On October 15, 2003, the Chinese first manned spacecraft, Shenzhou-5 with the
astronaut Liwei Yang, was successfully launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch
Center by using Long March-2F rocket, flew 14 circles around the Earth, and safely
return the ground, with the flight duration of 21 h and 23 min. It is a symbol that
China is the third country with the capability of carrying out manned earth orbit
flight independently after the USSR (later Russia) and the US. At the time, the first
step development plan was completed successfully. From 2005 to 2017, there were
six spacecrafts Shenzhou series, two space laboratories Tiangong series and a cargo
spaceship Tianzhou-1 launched sequentially, Among which, the Shenzhou-6 carried
two astronauts to conduct the flight test with 76 circles around the Earth, lasting
4 days, 2 h and 33 min; three astronauts onboard the Shenzhou-7 carried out the tests
of extravehicular activity, a small satellite-accompanying flight and other technologies; the Shenzhou-8 unmanned spacecraft carried out autonomously the rendezvous
and docking test with the Tiangong-1, which is an important milestone for the China’s
manned space flight project; both the Shenzhou-9 and Shenzhou-10 that carried with
three-astronaut crew each (including one female astronaut each) were docked with
the Tiangong-1 to conduct many space experiments, which marked the successful
completion of the second step development plan; in October 2016, two astronauts
taken by the Shenzhou-11 were launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center
to enter the Tiangong-2 launched in September, and lived in space for 33 days to
complete a series of scientific and technical test tasks; in April 2017, the Tianzhou-1
was launched from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Center, Hainan Province, China,
by using the Long March-7 rocket, and docked with the Tiangong-2 to first carry out
the in-orbit filling propellant test. So far as 2020, China is implementing the third
step development plan of manned space flight.
3.5.4 Manned Landing on the Moon
The manned landing on the Moon is the greatest space flight activity of humanity
in the twentieth century, which shows the great power of human conquering nature.
Ironically, it is also the product of the Space Race between the United States and
the Soviet Union. In the wake of the first satellite launched by the USSR, the US
quickly set up the NASA to concentrate the national advantageous resources and try
to seize the strategic commanding point in the field of manned space flight. However,
as the Soviet cosmonaut Gagarin successfully completed his first space mission, the
American dream was frustrated once again. As a result, the U.S. government had to
make new choice. On May 25, 1961, President Kennedy made an address to Congress,
and officially proposed an ambitious goal: “landing a man on the Moon by the end
of this decade and returning him safely to the Earth”. Shortly thereafter, the NASA
initiated the well-known as Apollo Program, whose objectives are: to establish the
technology to meet other national interests in space; to achieve preeminence in space