China launched manual craft with three members of crew onboard into space. During three-day flight one of three members of the crew will go into the outer space - it will be done by forty-two years old Zhai Zhigang. His stay in the outer space will last about 20 minutes. Together with the other member of the crew who will have to stand by Zhai from the open hatch taikonaut should launch into an orbit the tiny artificial satellite of the Earth. With its help all China will watch in a live television broadcast actions of taikonauts.
However, as experts thinks, in spite of the fact that China makes huge steps on a way of technical progress, technologically it trails the USA, the Western Europe and Russia by the whole generation - space program of People's Republic of China only repeats steps of the USSR of 40 years ago. Not casually experts from Moscow will observe the actions of taikonauts.
Actually, breakthrough in the Chinese man-rated astronautics took place in 1994 when China got a number of technologies used in spacecrafts "Souz" developed in the 60s years of the last century from Roscosmos. These devices have sustained more than 1000 start and are considered as the most reliable space vehicles from existing.
Access into space will take place in a survival suit of the Chinese manufacture (previous expeditions used the Russian survival suits). However even the Chinese recognize that design of these suits in many respects copies the Russian one. Moreover, the Chinese admitted that survival suits of the Russian manufacture would be taken as spare ones.
Nevertheless, in October, 2003 China became the third power after Soviet Union and the USA which independently sent a man into space. The second for China space expedition took place in October, 2005: two cosmonauts stayed in space onboard the ship "Shenzhou-6" five days.
The first rockets capable to access circumterraneous space appeared in China in the 50s years of the last century due to the USSR. Within the framework of the program of help to friendly country Soviet Union passed young Chinese republic not only "know-how" of the nuclear weapon but also technology of creation of means of delivery of this weapon to destination. In 1960 China tested the first ballistic missile of small range DF-1 which was a copy of the Soviet R-2.
Already in 1968 top management of China declared the beginning of own program on research and exploration of outer space. On the first of April of the same year Research Institute of Space Medicine and Engineering which later turned into the Center of Research Preparation of the Chinese Cosmonauts was established.
Within the next twenty years China was engaged only in start of artificial satellites. Only in 1986 the space project 863-2 according to which it was planned to create a space vehicle for delivery of a man into space and also space orbital station was authorized. That program didn't reach its purposes but in 1992 it integrated into the space program 921 - 1, the one which in 2003 was crowned with success.
From editorial board: However China plans not to stop on achieved and to master space technologies farther. People's Republic of China plans the start of orbital station that also copies the American and Soviet space programs but with backlog of 30 years. Then the Lunar program will pass during which Chinese "moon rover" will be launched and, probably, moon landing of taikonauts will occur. It repeats the American program but to repeat Armstrong's deed the USA now will require about 10 years for preparation and Russia does not plan it at all. Thus China already will draw nearer to the leading technological countries.
Further Chinese Martian program is being prepared - neither Russia, nor Japan or the countries of the Western Europe are not capable to prepare it. And, probably, later, in about twenty years China will overcome technological backlog in this sphere.
Thus, in twenty years, when by our estimations not less than two tens countries will posses the nuclear weapon and means of its delivery and political map of the Earth will appreciably change, China will form the second pole of the bipolar world and will be able to support its status of a superpower.
А.B.
