China's third unmanned spacecraft, "Shenzhou III," which was
launched on Monday, is in sound condition and flying normally on
its pre-set orbit, space scientists from the Beijing Aerospace
Directing and Controlling Center said Wednesday.
And outer-space scientific and technological experiments are being
carried out according to plan, said Sui Qisheng, director of the
center.
Experiments in space science have been successfully carried out on
the spacecraft, which had orbited the Earth at least 30 times by
Wednesday evening.
Sui noted that feedback data states the craft's flying condition is
very good.
The center has sent a chain of tele-commands to steer and operate
the orbital module to make it complete several activities, such as
adjusting the craft's direction in outer space, added Sui.
Dozens of space scientists work in the center, paying close
attention to the craft's responses via three-dimensional images and
data displayed on a huge computer screen at the center.
The internal environment of the spacecraft is the same as that of a
manned spacecraft, and a simulated voice responding to the center
can be heard clearly, said Gu Sheng, a telecommunication expert of
the center.
The spacecraft, which can carry out the functions of a manned
craft, was boosted by the "Long March II F" carrier rocket into a
pre-set orbit from
Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China's Gansu
Province.
Space experts said "Shenzhou III" was "technically suitable for
astronauts."
The spaceship is circling the Earth once every 90 minutes. It is
expected to fly in space for another couple of days before
landing.
(China Daily March 28,
2002)