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Astronauts
The Astronaut Programme (code name: 921-1) includes the recruitment and training of the astronauts; the medical support for the astronauts during training and flight missions; the research on space medicine and astronautical hygiene; and the development of space suit, space food, and the spacecraft life support and environment control system.
The military-run Beijing Institute of Space Medicine Engineering (507th Institute), publicly known as the Astronaut Centre of China (ACC), is in charge of all aspects of the programme. The institute operates an astronaut training facility situated inside the Beijing Space City in the northwest suburb of Beijing.
The Chinese Astronaut Corps was formed in December 1997 and initially consisted of 14 male astronaut candidates, all of whom were selected from military jet pilots. They were qualified for flying the Shenzhou spacecraft in 2003, after spending five years in training. So far six astronauts have flown in space in three separate missions. The second group of astronaut candidates, including five males and two females, were recruited in 2010.
Russia provided some assistance in the early stage of the programme, including training two Chinese pilots in the Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Centre in 1997, and allowing Chinese astronaut candidates to experience weightless onboard its IL-76 “Vomit Comet” plane. The Chinese pressure suit and EVA space suit were also based on Russian designs.
Last updated: 20 January 2012