China prepares to make space history

All systems are ready to go for the launch of China's third manned spacecraft, scheduled for Thursday evening, Xinhua reports. The three-day mission will for the first time in the country's history include a spacewalk.

The 30-minute spacewalk, scheduled to take place on Friday or Saturday, will be led by air force colonel Zhai Zhigang, 42, according to Chinese media. The other crew members include Jing Haipeng and Liu Boming.

The Shenzhou VII spacecraft will be carried into space on board a Long March 2F rocket. Blast-off is set to take place from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in Gansu province between 9:07pm and 10:27pm (1307 and 1427 GMT) on Thursday, AFP writes.

"We have the confidence, the determination and the ability to take the Chinese people's first steps into space," AFP quotes Jing Haipeng as saying.

The spacewalking mission is the first step in realizing China's next goal of building a permanent space lab, AFP says.

One of the major goals of the mission is to test a new Chinese-made spacesuit, the most advanced and expensive suit in the world, Xinhua says. The suit has been four years in the making, Chen Shanguang, commander-in-chief of the astronaut system told CRI. One taikonaut will be wearing a Russian Orlan spacesuit, according to Xinhua.

Other tasks include depressurizing and repressurizing, and exiting and re-entering the orbital module, releasing a small monitoring satellite and testing satellite data relay, Xinhua writes. The success of the entire mission depends on how well these tasks are carried out, according to Wang Zhaoyao, spokesman of the manned space mission.

China has planned to conduct two more unmanned space flights by 2010. The next manned spaceship with a crew of three will have the goal of starting work on the lab, AFP writes citing China Daily.

Although the astronauts have spent more than ten years preparing for the mission, it is not without its risks, Wang says.

"The process of (spacewalks) cannot be simulated completely on the ground," AFP reports of Wang telling China Daily.

China's first manned flight came in 2003. Before that, only the United States and Russia had accomplished this feat.

The Shenzhou VII spacecraft is scheduled to land in Inner Mongolia at the completion of its 68-hour journey, according to AFP.