September 25th 2008 will remain embedded in Chinese history books, as the Chinese have launched three men into outer space, from a remote location in the desert. Having had a flawless launch, it is expected that the Chinese space mission will undoubtedly be a success and will bring China some of the recognition it deserves in the technological field. Counting these three astronauts, China has proudly reached a grand total of six astronauts who have orbited space. All six of them are male, which is a tad ironic considering that it was Chairman Mao Zedong who said that women “hold up half the sky”.

Confronted with the question as to why there have been no women astronauts in the Chinese space programs, officials stated that such a program is currently in research, as they condemn hastiness when it comes to a life-risking mission. Future tasks, however, might be having a team with at least one female astronaut.

Other countries have not been so reluctant when it came to shooting women into space, but admittedly these countries started space exploration decades before the Chinese did. Famous female astronauts include Valentina Tereshkova (Soviet Union), the first woman in space in 1963 and American Sally Ride, a 1983 astronaut on famous space shuttle Challenger. Also, some even took the chance and sent animals into space. First there were fruit flies and corn seeds, and later on there was Rhesus Monkey, the first monkey in space, aboard Albert II (1949). The U.S. launched mice, and then the Soviet Union sent dogs into space, but not into orbit. The first animal ever sent into orbit was, as you may have guessed, Laika the dog, on Sputnik 2. The first human was launched in 1961 – the famous Yuri Gagarin.

The Chinese rocket, Shenzhou VII, raises the number of astronauts to three, breaking the previous Chinese record. Also, the space expedition is a major progress in technology. Except for a possible spacewalk, the mission will also include tests and samples from different types of space matter. Beside the mission itself, China has also attempted sending a small satellite, which will accompany the ship through space. China already has a relay satellite in space, Tianlian I, launched early in 2008, which will soon start functioning at full capacity.

This mission also serves China’s economic purposes, as it may lead to breakthroughs in technology. Such discoveries may also be mass produced and used as components or programs for computers and digital equipment. The astronauts also face dangerous challenges, such as the resistance of the spacesuit and overcoming space motion sickness.

Although extremely risky, China’s space missions have been successful and promising so far. The next step on China’s agenda is landing space modules and maybe even an actual moonwalk. Although the country’s space program got off to a late start (in 1992), it also benefitted from the mistakes of space pioneers Soviet Russia and the US. Also taking into consideration their knack for technology, it comes as no surprise that they possess the most technically advanced equipment and logistics.