China Performs Its First Spacewalk

An article from Barbara Demick of the Los Angeles Times is reporting that China has performed its first spacewalk. The spacewalk lasted 15 minutes and made china the third country in history to conduct a spacewalk. The other two countries to conduct a spacewalk were the United States and Russia.

Taikonaut Zhai Zhigang floated tethered to the spacecraft and performed some tests on lubricants and a few exterior inspections of the spacecraft. The article goes on to say that since Zhai grew up poor, his success is the epitome of the rags-to-riches story of the Chinese. The spacewalk was the highlight of the 68 hour mission and took place late this afternoon, a time that was convenient for many Chinese to watch.

Many Chinese celebrated their nation's first spacewalk by gathering at outdoor TV screens to cheer with a live video that was being broadcast. The spacewalk did have few interesting moments as Zhai triggered a fire alarm as he floated out of the spacecraft.

The recent launch is the third time that China has sent a man into space. The Chinese are hoping that the spacewalk will lead to the development of a permanent space station by 2020.