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What’s Pushing China to Space?

Posted on: Friday, 26 September 2008, 09:50 CDT

Space experts believe China has a growing confidence and capability in space; the launch of Shenzhou-VII is another reminder.

China says this mission is a critical step in a "three-step" human spaceflight program aimed at docking spacecraft together to form a small orbiting laboratory.

It has sent a robotic spacecraft called Chang'e to the Moon. Plans are in place to land a robotic rover on the lunar surface in 2010.
In 2007, China faced international criticism when it used a medium-range ballistic missile to destroy an ageing weather satellite in a weapons test.

Economic reasons are pushing these explorations, explains Dean Cheng, senior Asia analyst at think tank CNA in Washington DC.
"From a civilian perspective, you are fostering the development of advanced technologies," he explains.

Another driver is diplomacy, said Cheng. A wide-ranging space program showed the rest of the world that China has hit the international stage.
"That fits with hosting the Olympics, that fits with a burgeoning economy, and that fits with the world's largest foreign capital reserves," he explained.

He believes China wants to legitimize itself in the eyes of its national population .

"There are problems like melamine in milk. There are issues of corruption. But the party has shown it is able to achieve things that no previous Chinese government has ever done, and that China is among the first-rank powers in advanced technology," said Cheng. 

There is also military rationale meaning a nation that could launch multiple satellites on one rocket could put multiple warheads on a single rocket.

"The manned program is all the things I have mentioned and more. It is a sign of a wealthy country - this is a luxury item. It puts China ahead of every other Asian country - significantly - in terms of space," he explained.

If China is confident to launch its citizens into space, then it was certainly safe enough to launch another country's satellites.

"It is a prestige program, no question," said Dr. Roger Launius, senior curator in the division of space history at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington DC.

"I think China has entered the [manned spaceflight] arena for the same reasons that the United States and the Soviet Union did in 1961.

"It is a demonstration of technological virtuosity. It's a method of showing the world they are second to none - which is a very important objective for them."

China's steady, methodical progress in space has certainly highlighted the challenges faced by NASA as it works through the transition to a post-shuttle era.

However, suggestions that China has started a new space race with the US or the other traditional space powers are wide of the mark, experts say.

"This is not the 1960s. We are not watching China put up repeated manned shots one after the other. But they are intent on ensuring they don't have any spectacular failures either" said Cheng.

Dr Launius agreed, "There is not the same level of concern or interest registered in the US for a competition with China in space. I don't think they view that as an issue in Europe either."

He added: "There is a space race underway, but it is an Asian space race. It is between China, Japan, maybe Korea, certainly India. They are competing with each other for stature in that context.

"And the Chinese, because of their full service capability - humans, robots and military - are at this point in time probably the leaders in that race. But those other countries have lots of capability too."


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Source: redOrbit staff

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