Many space programs have been launched in hopes of advancing human reach outside of the planet. Among countries like Russia and the US, China also tried its hand at exploring space back in 2003, by launching its first manned spaceflight successfully, as mentioned in Cosmoquest.
The Chinese successfully launched several satellites in late 1980. This has led them to contemplate a manned mission out in space. Scientists and engineers debated over everything, which included whether they should create a more complex reusable shuttle or crewed capsules. Eventually, they settled on the capsule as it was easier to build and more robust.
Project 921: What is It?
China officially named its space project "Project 921," which created the Shenzhou rockets. It took them seven years before they launched the unmanned test flight in 1999. They tested the new Long Mach 2F rocket. The capsule made a few orbits and then successfully landed.
In 2001, an unmanned test flight for Shenzhou 2 was launched. Aboard the capsule were a monkey, a dog, and a rabbit. The animals were included to test the life support system of the capsule, which was proven to be successful upon return, seeing as the animals came back alive.
A working launch escape system was then added to the Shenzhou 3 and Shenzhou 4, which were then launched in 2002. Shenzhou was the last test flight that China launched without a crew.
Months before Shenzhou 5, 15 Chinese astronauts were sent to the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Site. Upon the arrival of the Long Mach 2F rocket at the launch site, it was also announced that the capsule would carry three crew members, and that the mission would be a week long.
However, the plan was changed a week before the lift-off. They officially announced that only one astronaut would board the capsule, and that it would only be for a day instead of a week. Among the 15 astronauts, only three were left, and Yang Liwei was selected, becoming the first Chinese astronaut.
China's Shenzhou V
The launch took place on October 15, 2003, at 1:00 UTC. The flight from the ground to space took 807 seconds, which made China the third country to launch a manned spacecraft in line with Russia and the US. The capsule orbited the Earth 14 times, which was in a span of 22 hours, before it landed in a remote region in Mongolia.
A lot more than just one astronaut was riding on the Shenzhou 5. There was a certain amount of pressure put on the mission because the Beijing-based People's Daily called it a "symbol of the state's comprehensive national strength and prestige."
This mission was a basis for the Chinese government's success in space missions, and whether it was on par with the US and Russia's standards. Officials from the Chinses space administration expressed their plans for docking missions and capsules that would last longer in orbital missions.
