China sent its first woman into space on Saturday after training to be an astronaut for the past two years.
Chinese first woman astronaut Liu Yang salutes as she was introduced during a press conference at the Jiuquan space base, north China's Gansu province on June 15, 2012. (Image credit: AFP/Getty Images via @daylife)
The U.S. might have abandoned the space race, considering it a waste of money in a country running towards the edge of a fiscal cliff. But China and Russia are boldly going where few men have gone before, and even fewer women. Especially Asian women.
The Shenzhou IX rocket lifted off carrying 33 year old female astronaut Liu Yang and male astronauts Jing Haipeng and Liu Wang today.
The crew will stay in space for more than 10 days, during which time they will perform scientific experiments and the country�s first manual space docking � a complicated procedure that brings two vessels together in high-speed orbit.
The launch was broadcast live on China Central Television.
A camera recorded the three astronauts in the craft before and after take-off. A red placard with the Chinese character �Fu,� a symbol for good fortune, hung above them. Liu Yang, a former China Air Force pilot, was seen smiling frequently and when a crewmate�s pen floated toward her once they were free of gravity, she volleyed it back to him. Flight leader, 46-year-old Jing Haipeng, held Liu�s hand at one point in the footage. The third crew member, 43-year-old Liu Wang, will take charge of the manual docking and the medical experiments.
�After docking, the astronauts will enter and live in Tiangong-1 and carry out experiments and exercises, but will dine in the spacecraft,� Wu Ping, a spokeswoman for China�s manned space program told reporters for China Daily.
The three astronauts will carry out the country�s first manned space docking mission that is an important step in the lead-up to building a space station by 2020.
Very little has been reported about Liu Yang as an individual. China society tends to be more communal and rarely celebrates the achievements of one person at the expense of the common unit.
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