Posted on 05/20/2002 10:23:21 AM PDT by RightWhale
China planning moon landing as first step to Mars
BEIJING (AFP) May 20, 2002
China may be planning to go to the moon in the course of the next decade, but an exhibition here Monday suggested it has far more ambitious goals -- Mars.
A model at the exhibition, organized for the country's National Science Week, showed China's vision of a permanent settlement on the red planet, a sci-fi fantasy replete with shiny domes and large greenhouses.
"From a long-term perspective, it is a historical necessity for man to travel into space," a poster at the exhibition proclaimed.
Chinese media reported last month that scientists were developing a new family of rockets that supposedly could send explorers to Mars.
While most Chinese scientists admit that a Mars mission is still a distant prospect, some have argued that the relevant technologies might as well be developed now.
One such device, a six-wheel robotic detector which could become China's first representative on the planet, was unveiled at the exhibition, which opened as China renewed vows to push ahead with its fledgling but ambitious space program.
China has yet to even put a man into orbit but official media claim, amid great official secrecy, that great strides are being made.
Its third successful unmanned test flight, the Shenzhou III, or "Divine Vessel III", traveled 108 times around the earth on a flight that ended April
The Shenzhou IV mission is still only being planned, but the state-run China Daily reported Monday that China had already carried out feasibility studies for traveling to the moon.
"Theoretically speaking, China is ready to explore the moon," Ouyang Ziyuan, chief scientist of China's moon exploration program, said according to the paper.
"China is expected to complete its first exploration of the moon in 2010 and will establish a base on the moon as we did in the South Pole and the North Pole," he said.
Chinese media said over the weekend that the nation's space scientists were planning a lunar base in order to exploit its mineral resources.
The Beijing Morning Post said China had adopted a three-step plan that would eventually make it possible to fly to the moon.
China first wants to put an astronaut in space, then establish a space laboratory, and eventually set up a space station, the paper said.
The paper quoted Wang Zhuangyin, a leading space-program engineer, as saying China would probably be able to achieve manned space flight by 2005.
The push to promote China's space program during National Science Week tallies with observers' claim that the plans are meant to trigger greater interest in technology among the public.
The tone at the exhibition also showed there is a great deal of self-interest involved in China's bid to become the third nation after the United States and the former Soviet Union to put a human in space.
"The development and actual use of technologies for manned space flight have far-reaching significance for our nation in the political, military, economic and technological fields," a poster at the exhibition said.
The Chinese government said in November 2000 that the aims of its space program included meeting growing demands for national security and to "protect China's national interests and build up comprehensive national strength".
"If the Chinese can figure out how to raise dogs and rice up there, good for them."
I can see them putting a guy in space, and perhaps doing a small space station by 2010, but as Jim Oberg pointed out, the logistics for a moon base are beyond them right now.
I have to think that the real reason they're doing this is because it's a status thing. Space is what Great Nations do. This probably increases the chances that they may actually try -- it's much easier to justify it on nationalistic grounds than it is on technical ones.
However, the essentially political nature of the attempt also makes me think that it'll be the first thing to go when China's domestic difficulties begin to mount.
They did?
Possibly the ONLY LBJ quote worthy of this forum.
And in the early 60's, putting a man on the moon was beyond our abilities too. However, stating a goal, and working towards a goal, means that the abilities grow. The sciences that have spun off of NASA are over 100x the cost of the Appollo programs. The advances that were made in communications, medicine, computers, software, materials, remote sensing, etc, etc. have far exceeded expectations. As it is now, the USA does not have a stated goal or mission in space; let alone a timeline for doing anything remotely new.
Sad to say, but I bet she'll still be a Congress critter if she hangs around that long. No amount of redistricting will carve up her district enough for her to lose.
While that was true for LBJ's generation, I doubt it is for the current generation. A year or so ago Jay Leno on his "Jay Walking" stint came across a young college graduate from one of California's esteemed state universities, and asked her how many moons Earth has. Her answer? Five.
This only begins to point to the scope of the problem we're dealing with today.
It would take a year to let contracts, and another two years to get some hardware delivered. At the minimum, three years. Probably more like 5 - 10 years, which was the original schedule in the 60s.
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