Shenzhou VII launched for 1st spacewalk

Shenzhou VII, carrying astronauts Zhai Zhigang, Liu Boming and Jing Haipeng, blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Gansu province, into a clear sky. As is the case with such missions, the first few moments were tense. But then the ground control heard the voices of the astronauts. They felt "physically sound", they said to the joy of the scientists on the ground.

"The solar panel has unfolded, and we feel well," one of them said. Remote-measuring signals showed all their physical indices, such as blood pressure and heartbeat, were normal. The astronauts will orbit the Earth for three days, 68 hours, to be precise, and one of them will walk in space about 343 km above the Earth on Saturday.

That will make China the third country to conduct extra-vehicular activity (EVA) in space. The other two to have achieved that are the former Soviet Union and the US.

The timing of the spacewalk could, however, be changed, depending on how long it would take for the astronauts to adjust to all the factors. EVAs are essential for China's long-term goal of building a space station by 2020, and possibly launching a manned mission to the Moon.