China Plans Manned Space Launch By 2005
cosyne writes: "CNN.COM has this article on China's space program planning to send a man to the moon. 'The mission is part of Beijing's plans to create a space industry and earn the prestige of joining the United States and Russia as the only nations to have sent humans into space.' I wonder if they'll make it before the recently mentioned amateurs."
So will most consumer products soon start bearing the label: "Made in Space" ?
try { do() || do_not(); } catch (JediException err) { yoda(err); }
Reminds me of the Cold War that stimulated our space program. There's nothing that can stimulate a space program better than a military advantage. Perhaps this little bit of competition will encourage Congress to give NASA the funding they need to do more than just crash probes into distant planets.
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They just want to get their feet wet, for now.
New Scientist has a good story on this. And there is this page with links on the chinese space program from U.S. Embassy Beijing Environment, Science and Technology Section.
"It is a greater offense to steal men's labor, than their clothes"
How well does this translate into Mandarin?:
"We choose to go to the moon, and to do these other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard."
Cynical old bastard that I am, those words actually choke me up every time I hear them. Space exploration (not arsing about in low earth orbit) exemplifies everything that is great about the human spirit. Our reach should exceed our grasp.
We in the west have forgotten that, and now it's all about the bottom line. Sounds like China still gets it. Good luck to them, I reckon.
If you were blocking sigs, you wouldn't have to read this.