The following pictures are from a brief video report broadcast on China’s CCTV7 state run channel (CCTV9 is that government’s English language channel) that has found its way onto Youtube – see the video embedded in the extended section of this blog posting along with older related videos
Below is what appears to be the first picture of the Chinese EVA spacesuit, albeit modified for underwater operation, and unsurprisingly, like this video obtained by Flight in 2007, it looks very much like a Russian Zvezda Orlan suit
While this image shows the orbital module model in the bottom of the tank it also looks very similar to the shape and design of the module shown in the aforementioned video
The following two images appear to be pictures of the two astronauts to undergo water tank training and perhaps they are candidates to carry out the mission?
Click on for the water tank training video
The video also shows what appears to be post landing survival training with three astronauts involved, the maximum number of crew China’s Shenzhou spacecraft can carry and the designated number for the Shenzhou VII mission. For some time now this mission has been said to be planned for October this year, three years after the last manned mission that involved two crew
My two blogs from my trip to Beijing and visit to the China Astronaut Training Center are here and here
What I saw there made me very sceptical of China’s ability to have a space walk mission this year. The water tank video sequence shows that the Chinese are following up to date Russian (and American) practice although those two countries first EVA events in the 1960s did not involve water based training
The appearence of the water tank, assuming it is in China, would suggest they have put in the investment necessary. I have been to Russia’s Gagarin Training Center aka Star City and been inside its water tank facility and it is not the same
For my other travelogue like blog postings with lots of video from my worldly travelsgo here
And here are those other videos and click here for some speculation from Australian Chinese space programme expert Dr Morris Jones
