The newspaper wrote that prelaunch preparation and testing of the Shenzhou-3 spacecraft (SZ-3, Shenzhou means "Magic Vessel") and the Changzheng-2F (Long March-2F) launch vehicle entered "an intense period". The mission will lift off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre (JSLC), China's manned spaceflight launch centre, in the northwestern Gansu Province.

Yesterday (July 30) the same newspaper reported that three of the four Yuanwang (YW, Yuanwang means "Long View") tracking vessels spent the past two months at their home port in Shanghai to undergoing refurbishment and upgrade in preparation of supporting the SZ-3 mission.

For example the oldest ship of the fleet, YW-1 which entered service in 1977, received an intelligent navigation control system. Coupled with electronic ocean maps, navigators can simply enter a planned route and the navigation control system will automatically guide the ship in the proper bearing.

YW-1 left port in recent days for a pre-mission testing of all systems. This is another sign that the SZ-3 launch is near.

Wen Wei Po has a track record of reporting news of imminent key Chinese space launches. The newspaper reported the planned maiden unmanned test flight SZ-1 five days before the launch. For the SZ-2 mission, the newspaper reported the imminent launch twelve days before the blastoff.

Based on this track record SZ-3 may occur before the end of August; perhaps as early as in two weeks.

The unmanned SZ-3 mission will use a flight-rated spacecraft to continue comprehensive testing of all systems, particularly the subsystems that would ensure the safety of yuhangyuans ("astronauts") during ascent, on-orbit and descent operations.

Like the SZ-2 flight, there will also be science payloads to study life and material sciences, astrophysics and space physics.

Just two weeks ago Chinese scientists announced breakthrough achievements in several experiments that were flown on SZ-2.

A CZ-2F will launch the Shenzhou manned spacecraft in its third unmanned test flight from JSLC.

An unidentified specialist told the newspaper that the Shenzhou spacecraft must have a definite safety and reliability standard before the first manned flight.

"The standard is not simply derived from computer calculations. It must include engineering measures for testing, verification and assurance; not only through repeated ground testings but also several tests in space," said the specialist.

The specialist also mentioned other issues that would need to be addressed, for example, the space cabin dynamical environment that yuhangyuans would face which include temperature, pressure, humidity and atmospheric composition; food and beverage consumption; and human waste management.

If the SZ-3 mission goes well, the specialist said that SZ-4 would be launched before the end of the year. The specialist added that China would require at least three additional unmanned test flights before the first manned mission.

This would place the first manned mission on SZ-6 in the second half of 2002 at the earliest. The projection is in agreement with the statement that a senior space official made during an interview with the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun in March.

China began its manned space project, codenamed "921 Project", in 1992. If SZ-6 carries the first yuhangyuan crew, it will launch China into an exclusive club along with the former Soviet Union and the United States to become the third nation to send its astronauts in space in its own launch vehicle.

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China recently completed an advanced spacecraft tracking, telemetry and command network (TT&C), space officials told Xinhua News Agency Thursday.

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