CHINA LAUNCHED SHENZHOU-13 ON A 6-MONTH | UPSC EXAM

INTRODUCTION

  • The work of the first three-person crew, who spent 90 days aboard, will be continued by China’s second crewed expedition.
  • Before returning to Earth in mid-September, the crew of the first crewed mission had completed two spacewalks and deployed a 10m mechanical arm.

 

SECOND CREWED MISSION OF CHINA –

  • Pilot Zhai Zhigang, 55, and Wang Yaping, 41, are two space veterans on the second crewed trip. Wang Yaping is the sole woman on the mission. Ye Guangfu, 41, is the third crew member who is making his maiden trip to space.
  • At least three spacewalks will be performed by the crew in order to install equipment in preparation for the station’s expansion.
  • They’ll also analyse the module’s living conditions and conduct space medicine and other experiments.
  • The launch of the Shenzhou-13 spacecraft marks the structure’s fifth mission, including unmanned supply launches.
  • In order to completely operationalize the space station, China’s current space programme expects to send many crews to the station over the next two years.
  • When two more modules, Mengtian and Wentian, are added, the station will weigh around 66 tonnes, which is a quarter of the size of the International Space Station. The first module of ISS was launched in the year 1998.
  • During the Shenzhou-14 crew’s stay, two more Chinese modules will be launched before the end of 2022. When completed, the Chinese space station would weigh roughly 450 tonnes.

 

CHINA ISN’T A PART OF ISS – 

  • China has been denied access to the International Space Station, mostly due to US concerns about the Chinese program’s secrecy and close military links. As a result, China launched two trial modules before embarking on the construction of a permanent space station.
  • Contact between the American and Chinese space programmes requires congressional clearance under US law. China, on the other hand, is collaborating with space scientists from Russia, France, Sweden, and Italy. Chinese officials have also declared that once the space station is fully operational, they hope to welcome astronauts from other countries aboard.
  • On October 15, 2021, China’s Foreign Ministry reaffirmed its willingness to collaborate with other nations in the peaceful use of space

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