China will connect manned spacecraft

China plans to launch manned spacecraft into space this month, for the first time to carry out a mission to connect with space testing station.

Xinhua quoted a spokesperson for the manned space program, saying that the Shenzhou 9 spacecraft and boosters had been transferred to the launch pad of the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, northwest of China.

"The launch of the spacecraft will take place around mid-June. The spacecraft controlled by three astronauts will connect to the Thien Cung 1 module on Earth orbit," the spokesman said.

China's Shenzhou 9 spacecraft at the Center
Launching the Liuquan satellite, Gansu province in September last year.

According to Niu Hongguang, deputy commander of the manned space program, the crew of the Shenzhou 9 spacecraft could have female astronauts.

After the connection between the Shenzhou 9 and the Heavenly Palace module, the two astronauts will temporarily move temporarily into Thien Cung-1, where they will conduct scientific experiments. One person will stay in the airship in case of an emergency. Thien Cung-1, China's first space station module, was launched into orbit in September 2011.

This connection mission is the latest development in the program aimed at helping China have a fixed space station in 2020. The unmanned Shenzhou 8 spacecraft returns to Earth in November 2011, after when completed two assemblies with Thien Cung-1. It was the first time China conducted unmanned pairing on the universe. This is a complicated job because the two spacecraft are moving at high speeds in orbit. Mastering the coupling technology on the universe is a simple task that Russia and the US have done in the 60s of the last century.

China considers the space program a symbol of its global stature, as well as its ability to develop technology. The program is aiming to set up China's space station, where a crew can exist independently for several months, like the Russian Mir station or the International Space Station (ISS). China first brought citizens to space in 2004 and since then has carried out a number of tasks involving human in space.