Beijing (Associated Press)-On July 4, two astronauts conducted their first spacewalk outside China’s new orbital station. They used a 50-foot-long robotic arm to install cameras and other equipment.
State television showed that when the earth rolled under them, Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo crawled out of the airlock. The third flight attendant, Commander Nie Haisheng, stayed inside.
According to the China Space Administration, Liu and Tang spent nearly seven hours outside the space station.
Astronauts arrived at China’s third orbital station on June 17 for a three-month mission as part of an ambitious space program that will land a robotic rover on Mars in May. Their mission came when the ruling Communist Party celebrated its 100th anniversary.
The first module of the space station “Tianhe” or “Tianhe” was launched on April 29. Followed by automated spacecraft with food and fuel. Liu, Nie and Tang arrived in the Shenzhou capsule on June 17.
Liu fixed his feet on the platform at the end of the remote arm, and when he used electric drills and other tools to install the equipment, he fixed him in place.
The China Space Administration plans to carry out 11 launches by the end of next year, adding two more modules to the 70-ton space station.
Liu is a veteran of the Shenzhou 7 mission in 2008, during which Zhai Zhigang completed China’s first spacewalk. Nie was in space for the third time, and Liu was the first. All are military pilots.
