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Chinese Astronauts Brace for Space Walk

26/09/08September 26, 2008

China’s three astronauts have spent their first day in the orbit, preparing for the country's first attempt at a spacewalk.

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Chinese astronauts walk to the rocket before the launch of the Shenzhou-7 manned spacecraft on 25 September 2008.
Chinese astronauts walk to the rocket before the launch of the Shenzhou-7 manned spacecraft on 25 September 2008.Image: picture-alliance / Newscom

Astronaut Zhai Zhigang is expected to undertake a spacewalk on Saturday afternoon, an event which will be broadcast live by state television.

The walk is expected to last for at least 20 minutes. The Shenzhou 7 spacecraft is China's third manned mission in past five years.

The mission is expected to last three or four days. China aims to assemble a permanent space station by 2020.

In October 2003, China became only the third nation after the United States and Russia to independently put a man in space.