China is heralding success as its youngest astronauts reach space

A Chinese spacecraft with a crew of three, including the country’s first female space engineer, has come to rest after more than six hours of travel.

Crews will use the home-grown space station as a base for six months to conduct experiments and spacewalks as Beijing gathers information and intelligence for its ultimate goal of putting a man on the Moon by 2030.

Beijing has declared the launch of Shenzhou 19 a “total success” – one of 100 launched by China in a record year for space exploration as it tries to overtake its rival, the United States.

The BBC was given rare access to the Jiuquan Satellite launch center in Gansu and was only a kilometer away when the spacecraft exploded.

Flames shot out of the rocket as it took to the sky, lighting up the Gobi Desert with a deafening roar.

Hundreds of people lined the streets, waving and cheering the names of the pilots, the Chinese word for astronauts, as they were fired.

At the Tiangong space station, the crew of Shenzhou 19 met with three other astronauts carrying Shenzhou 18 and will return to Earth on November 4.

Just two years ago, President Xi Jinping declared that “exploring the vast universe, developing the space industry and building China into a space power is our eternal dream”.

But others in Washington see the country’s desire for rapid progress as a real threat.

Earlier this year, Nasa chief Bill Nelson said the US and China were “in fact, in a race” to return to the Moon, fearing that Beijing was seeking territorial claims.

He told members of the legislature that he believed their civilian space program was a military program.

However, in Dongfeng Space City, the city built to support the launch site, China’s program is being celebrated.

All the street lights are decorated with the national flag.

Cartoon-like astronaut figures and sculptures sit in the center of children’s parks and plastic rockets are the backbone of many traffic lanes.

A large poster with Xi Jinping on one side and an image of the Shenzhou spacecraft on the other greets you as you drive into the main square.

Hundreds gathered in the dark after midnight to wave flags and brightly colored lights as the Taikonauts made their last few steps on Earth before heading to the launch pad.

A brass band plays the Ode to the Motherland like little children, kept up to the occasion, their cheeks decorated with the Chinese flag, all shouting in full song.

This is a time of national pride.

The mission’s pilot, Cai Xuzhe, is a veteran but is accompanied by a new generation of Chinese-trained taikonauts born in the 1990s – including China’s first female space engineer, Wang Haoze.

“Their youthful energy made me feel younger and more confident,” she told the assembled media before taking off.

“We are motivated by dreams that glorify glory, and glory that ignites new dreams, we assure the team and the people that we will remain faithful to our work, our hearts and minds are fully dedicated. We will strive to achieve new achievements in China’s space program.”

Standing to his left, radiant, is Song Lingdong.

He remembers watching one of China’s first space missions when he was 13 years old with “excitement and fear”. He chose to become a pilot in the hope that this is how he can serve his country.

All three conveyed their deep sense of national pride, and state media emphasized that this would be their “youngest team” to date.

The message is clear: this is a new generation of space travelers and an investment in the future of the world.

China has already selected its next batch of astronauts and they will be trained for possible missions to the moon and the operation of the space station.

“I am determined not to give up my distrust,” said Mr. Song. “I will fight for the name of our country to shine again in space.”

China’s name has been “shining brightly” lately when it comes to topics related to its space program.

Earlier this year, the country achieved the first record by receiving rock and soil samples from the far side of the Moon.

In 2021, China safely landed a spacecraft on Mars and released its Zhurong rover – becoming the second country to do so.

China also has a network of satellites in space and plans for many more.

In August it launched the first of 18 of what it hopes will eventually be a constellation of 14,000 satellites that will provide broadband internet from space, hoping to one day rival SpaceX’s Starlink.

Elon Musk, the CEO of Starlink, admitted in his X forum that China’s space program is more advanced than people realize.

But some in the US are expressing even greater concern, as they fear the technology could be weaponized.

The head of the US Space Command, General Stephen Whiting, told a space conference in April that China and Russia were both investing heavily in space at a “breathtaking pace”.

He said that since 2018, China has tripled the number of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance satellites it has in orbit, creating a “killing web over the Pacific Ocean to detect, fix, track and target the United States and allied military forces”.

China’s space exploration is “a joint mission of mankind”, said Li Yingliang, director of the general technical center of China’s Manned Space Agency, dismissing US concerns as “unnecessary”.

“I don’t think this should be called a competition… China has long supported the idea of ​​peaceful use of space in its manned space program. In the future, we will promote international cooperation in various fields of manned space technology, all based on sharing and cooperation,” he added.

But the new space race is no longer about landing on the Moon. It is about who will control its resources.

The moon contains minerals, including rare earths, metals such as iron and titanium – and helium too, which is used in everything from superconductors to medical devices.

Estimates of the value of all of this vary wildly, from billions to quadrillion. So it’s easy to see why some see the Moon as a place to make a lot of money. However, it is also important to note that this can be a long-term investment – and the technology required to extract and recover these lunar resources is far from over, writes BBC science editor Rebecca Morelle.

Chinese experts at the launch center were keen to highlight the benefits of testing the Beijing space station.

“We study bones, muscles, nerve cells, and the effects of microgravity on them. Through this research, we discovered that osteoporosis on Earth is actually similar to bone loss in space. “If we can uncover unique patterns in space, we may be able to develop special medicines to combat bone loss and muscle degeneration,” said Zhang Wei, from the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

“Many of these experimental results can be used on Earth.”

China, at times, tries to undermine its progress.

When presenting a roadmap for its space ambitions, including building a research station on the Moon, returning Venus air samples to Earth and launching more than 30 space missions by the middle of this century, Ding Chibiao from the Chinese Academy of Sciences. he said the country does not have many achievements “compared to developed countries”.

And even here at the launch center, they admit to “huge challenges” as they try to land a crew on the Moon.

“The technology is complex, there is a strong system, and there are many challenges,” said Lin Xiqiang, a spokesman for the China Manned Space Agency.

“We will go along with the spirit of ‘two bombs and one star’. We will maintain our confidence and commitment to self-improvement, continue to work together and continue to push forward. We will make the Chinese people’s dream of landing on the Moon a reality in the near future.”

Perhaps this is why President Xi seems to be prioritizing the country’s space program even though the economy is slowing down.

And even if they bring international media to see their progress – there are important limitations.

We were kept at a hotel three hours from the launch and transported by bus, a total of 12 hours, rather than being left on site for a few hours.

A simple walk to a friendly local restaurant was carefully guarded by a line of security personnel.

We also saw a large sign in the city with a stern warning: “It is a crime to reveal secrets.” It is a privilege to keep secrets. You will be arrested if you leak secrets. You will be happy if you keep secrets. You will be shot if you sell secrets.”

China is not taking a chance with its new technology, as its rivalry with the United States is no longer only here on Earth.

Two of the most powerful countries in the world may lay claim to territories outside of this planet.