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China Targets Oct. 15 For Manned 14-Orbit Space Flight (Dominionization),

China Targets Oct. 15 For Manned 14-Orbit Space Flight

Around Earth

By JOE McDONALD
.c The Associated Press

BEIJING (AP) - China's first manned space flight might be bolder than previously reported.

A day after state media said the capsule would make one 90-minute loop around Earth, a major state newspaper said Thursday that 14 orbits are planned during the trip, expected sometime this month.

Astronauts are making final preparations for the flight, which is to include orbits at two different altitudes, the Liberation Daily of Shanghai said, citing ``relevant channels.''

The government hasn't announced a launch date or other details, but reports Wednesday by state television and other media said the rocket would blast off Oct. 15.

The Liberation Daily said the launch - from a Gobi Desert base about 900 miles west of Beijing - will happen during the day.

A successful flight would make China only the third nation capable of manned space travel. It could boost the Communist Party's standing with a public weary of corruption and official abuses.

The reports Wednesday said a single astronaut would make the flight aboard the three-seat Shenzhou 5, or ``Divine Vessel.'' The reports said the astronaut would travel with no scientific equipment - only a 2.2-pound bag of seeds for research on the effects of space radiation.

The Liberation Daily said the flight is to begin with an orbit that would come within 125 miles of the Earth. After circling the planet several times, the craft will move to an orbit about 220 miles out, it said.

China has aspired to join Russia and the United States as the world's only spacefaring nations since the 1970s. Its latest program began in 1992 under the name ``Project 921'' and accelerated in recent years with the help of bigger budgets and new Russian-bought technology.

The country has launched four unmanned Shenzhou capsules on test flights that lasted nearly a week.

The capsule is based on the Russian Soyuz, though with extensive modifications. The Liberation Daily quoted its chief designer as saying in an interview that the test flights have led to improvements in the capsule.

Its 8-foot, 3-innch diameter is about a third larger than current Russian capsules, giving astronauts room to move around and conduct experiments, Qi Farun was quoted as saying.

Qi acknowledged some opposition to the project.

``Even among us, there were some who believed spacecraft are too complicated, and require too large an investment, for no obvious return,'' the Liberation Daily quoted him as saying. ``Complicated things can be unsafe.''

Also Thursday, a Foreign Ministry spokeswoman affirmed what she said was China's interest in peaceful space exploration, and said the Shenzhou program would benefit all mankind.

``Like many other nations, China's exploration of outer space is purely for peaceful purposes,'' Zhang said during a regular news briefing. ``China has always supported the `non-weaponization' of space. China will not take part in any arms race in space.''

10/09/03 13:08 EDT

Fri Oct 10