Space scientists in China and Europe will look skywards for
their "Christmas presents" this year, with their first satellite
under the Double Star Project due for lift-off in late
December.
The satellite - which will study the effects of the Sun on the
Earth's environment - is ready for launch next month, the China
National Space Administration said Thursday.
It will fly as far as 66,970 kilometers from the Earth, further
than any other in China's space history, according to Liu Zhenxing,
chief scientist of the project.
The satellite, codenamed TC-1, is one of two to be sent into
orbit under the Sino-European venture.
"The first of the two geospace exploration satellites and an
improved Long March 2C rocket have met all the design requirements
and are ready for lift-off," said Sun Laiyan, vice-director of the
space agency.
Liu said the mission would probe and predict more precisely
geospace storms that could threaten spacecraft safety.
Liu proposed the Double Star initiative in 1997. It became a
joint project between China's space agency and the European Space
Agency (ESA) in 2001, when the two signed an agreement in
Paris.
By launching two satellites by mid-2004, Chinese and European
scientists hope the Double Star Project will operate alongside four
satellites from Cluster II project, which the ESA started in 2000
to study how solar winds affect the Earth.
Solar winds, the perpetual stream of subatomic particles given
out by the Sun, can damage satellites and disrupt communications
and power systems on the Earth, scientists said.
The Europeans provided eight instruments identical to those on
the four Cluster spacecraft to the Double Star mission, and will
support their operation, said ESA Cluster Project Scientist
Philippe Escoubet.
It is the first time European experiments will be carried out on
Chinese satellites, according to Liu.
"Double Star will be a major contribution to Cluster and will
enhance greatly its scientific output," Escoubet said in a
telephone interview with China Daily from the Netherlands
Thursday.
(China Daily November 21, 2003)
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