Latest Tiangong 1 Stories

China's most well-known astronaut said Friday that his country and the United States should make good on promises of cooperation in space made by their respective presidents, reports Reuters. "I think the two countries should proactively implement the intent expressed in the joint communiqué to eliminate obstacles and promote exchange and cooperation in our space programs," said Yang Liwei, now the vice director of the country's Manned Space Engineering Office. Efforts in the past to bring...

China has completed work on their first module for an unmanned space station, and currently plan to put the module into orbit sometime next year, according to Xinhua News Agency reports on Tuesday.The 8.5 metric ton Tiangong-1 "is expected to carry out China's first space docking, with the Shenzhou-8 spacecraft, which will be launched in the second half of 2011," according to Xinhua reporters.Citing an unidentified source from the Chinese military, the news agency also said that...

Two Chinese women have been selected as part of a seven-person interstellar crew, marking the first time in China's history that females will participate in the nation's growing space program.The unnamed women, both of whom have been identified as aero-transport pilots from the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Air Force, will join five men in China's second-generation of astronauts, according to Zhang Jianqi, the former deputy commander of the China National Space Administration. "In the...