China's first manned space mission enters orbit

China launched its first manned space mission today, sending an astronaut hurtling into orbit and becoming the third country in Earth’s history to do so - four decades after the Soviet Union and the US.

With a column of smoke, the Shenzhou 5 craft cut across a bright, azure north west China sky at exactly 9am local time (2am Irish time). The official Xinhua News Agency immediately confirmed the launch and said the astronaut was air force Lieutenant Colonel Yang Liwei, 38.

“China’s first manned spacecraft, the Shenzhou 5, blasted off,” Xinhua said. China Central Television’s Channel One, the government’s flagship station, cut into its programming to announce the launch, though no footage was immediately shown.

Minutes later, a CCTV announcer said that Shenzhou 5 and Yang had “entered orbit at 9.10” (2.10am Irish time).

It was the culmination of a decade of efforts by China’s military-linked manned space programme – and a patriotism-drenched moment for a Communist government more concerned than ever about its profile on the world stage.

Referring to China’s earlier unmanned space launches, an announcer on the English-language government channel CCTV-9 invoked US astronaut Neil Armstrong’s words upon first walking on the moon. “If these were small steps,” the announcer said, “then now we are taking a giant leap into space.”

Security was tight around the remote Gobi Desert base, some 175 miles north east of Jiuquan.

This morning, the only road to the launch site was crowded with traffic, including military vehicles and civilian tour buses. But private cars were turned back and phone calls to the base were blocked.

China kept details of the event secret, saying in advance only that the launch would take place between today and Friday and that the astronaut would orbit the Earth 14 times. Yang was identified as a lieutenant colonel.

The Shenzhou 5 launch came after four test launches of unmanned capsules that orbited the Earth for nearly a week before parachuting back to China’s northern grasslands. State media say the manned flight is expected to last about 20 hours.

“The launch of Shenzhou 5 is long-awaited by the Chinese people,” Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue said earlier. She said the flight was a key step in the “peaceful development of space” – a reflection of China’s effort to reassure the world that its military-linked programme is benign.

The Shenzhou, or “Divine Vessel”, is based on the three-seat Russian Soyuz capsule, though with extensive modifications. China also paid Moscow to train at least two astronauts.

But Beijing insists everything sent into space will be developed and made in China. State media, trying to dispel suggestions that its triumph depends on foreign know-how, refer to Shenzhou as “China’s self-designed manned spaceship”.

Xinhua released a picture of Yang, a pilot since 1983, boarding Shenzhou 5 about 8am local (1am Irish time) today.

“I will not disappoint the motherland. I will complete each movement with total concentration. And I will gain honour for the People’s Liberation Army and for the Chinese nation,” the popular Chinese website Sina.com quoted Yang as saying.

Sohu said Yang was selected yesterday from a pool of three finalists. The astronauts have been training for years, and the field of candidates was narrowed from 14 in recent days.

Xinhua quoted space officials assuring the public that the astronauts’ space suits were safe and the Long March CZ-2 F booster was China’s “best rocket”.

After months of official silence, the government showed growing confidence over the past week, announcing that the flight would blast off some time between today and Friday and splashing pictures of the once-secret launch base across newspapers.

But the decision to cancel a live broadcast suggested leaders might be unnerved by the thought of the propaganda disaster that an accident could produce. The People’s Daily website gave no explanation for the decision to cancel.

China used to broadcast satellite launches live, but stopped in 1995 after a rocket blew up moments after lift-off, reportedly killing six people on the ground.

The Gansu Daily, published in Lanzhou, capital of the province where the ship was launched, welcomed the accomplishment.

“Finally, the time has come to realise the 1,000-year dream of flying dreamed by the sons and daughters of China,” it said