SINGAPORE—China launched its first civilian astronaut into space Tuesday as part of a new crew for its space station, demonstrating the country’s growing space capabilities at a time when increased military and technology competition with the United States is escalating geopolitical tensions.
The rocket carrying the Shenzhou-16 spacecraft and its three crew took out in the morning from a launch pad in northern China’s Gobi Desert, and the astronauts arrived at the Tiangong Space Station around seven hours later. The trip is the first since China completed and outfitted the permanently staffed orbiting base, and it comes as the country prepares to go deeper into space, sending humans to the moon and a probe to Mars.
Washington regards Beijing’s space program as yet another front in the two countries’ increasing competition, and has limited exports of some technology and parts to prevent China from getting an advantage. The United States is preparing for a possible space confrontation and has increased its deterrence against China. The White House proposed a $30 billion yearly budget for the Space Force in March, nearly $4 billion higher than the previous year.
China accuses the United States of attempting to limit its rise by restricting access to cutting-edge technology. Xi Jinping, China’s leader, has stated that the “space dream is an important part of the dream to make China stronger,” as part of a broader push for technological self-sufficiency. The country has made significant investments in its space program and is racing to develop a satellite communications network. To deny opponents access to space-based assets, it has also developed ground-based missiles, lasers, and enhanced surveillance capabilities.
“Such demonstration of independent space capabilities adds to China’s great power status and as a rival alternative space power to the rest of the world,” said Namrata Goswami, an independent space policy analyst based in Alabama.
Jing Haipeng, a veteran astronaut on his fourth mission, is joined by two first-timers, spaceflight engineer Zhu Yangzhu and payload specialist Gui Haichao, a professor at Beijing’s Beihang University.
“We’re 20 years apart in age, so this is a cross-generational team,” Jing, 56, explained on Monday.
They will take over from the three crew members who have been aboard the Tiangong, which means “Heavenly Palace” in Chinese, since November after a five-day handover. The freshly arriving crew will undertake spacewalks, help with the docking and departure of cargo and other spacecraft, and conduct scientific experiments throughout their five-month mission.
According to Liu Bojian, a research assistant at the National University of Singapore who analyzes China’s space activities, the inclusion of a civilian complements Beijing’s objective of opening up the space industry to the private sector. Previously, all astronauts served in the People’s Liberation Army Air Force.
“China is attempting to ensure that it will have enough well-trained astronauts, both experienced and young, in the next two decades to prepare for even larger missions, such as landing on the moon, and even on Mars,” said Liu.
Lin Xiqiang, deputy head of the China Manned Space Agency, stated on Monday that China hopes to land astronauts on the moon by 2030, as the space race with the United States intensifies. The United States intends to return to the lunar surface for the first time in more than five decades as early as 2025.
The US and Chinese space programs evolved independently of one another. Since 2011, China has been forbidden from partnering with NASA and sending astronauts to the International Space Station under US legislation. However, if China’s Tiangong space station is decommissioned as planned in 2030, it may be the only one in functioning.
“China’s space program is integrated into its civil-military fusion strategy…[and] it plans to challenge US dominance on the moon within this framework,” Goswami, co-author of “Scramble for the Skies: The Great Power Competition for Control of Outer Space Resources,” said. She cites China’s objective of returning samples from the lunar South Pole and establishing a permanent research facility on the moon.
The Chinese space agency said it is constructing a new carrier rocket, spacecraft, and spacesuit, as well as a lunar lander, in preparation for the trip.
