Sustainable Development
Chinese astronauts successfully achieved the first-ever Chinese spacewalk on September 27. It was a milestrone in Chinese history. The aim of the mission were not not scientific, but also military and economic.
Spacewalking, also known as extra-verhicular activity (EVA), was first achieved by Soviet Russia in 1965. Spaceman Alexei Leonov walked out of a Russian spacecraft for 24 minutes. Three months later, American spaceman Edward White also completed an EVA. The two superpowers of that time did EVAs to demonstrate their strenght.
Extra-vehicular activity is dangerous because the environment in space is unstable and uncontrollable. There is high radiation and the temperature fluctuates. Before astronauts leave the spaceship, the air pressure is reduced to zero and the only protection the astronauts had were their space suits. This is the reason for heavy investment by China in the invention and production of a relaible space suit.
The Chinese made space suit was made from a mixture of fibres. It is resistant to temperatures up to 200 ¢XC. It is also radiation-resistant and resistant to collision (there are lots of debris in space and they may collide with spacemen). The suits cost around 30 million yuan (HK$34 million) to develop.
(Source: The Student Standard)
Questions
1. Describe and explain the design of the space suit.
2. What are the foreseeable difficulties for China to further develop space technology?
3. Should China develop space travel? What other factors should we consider?