BEIJING, Oct. 12 (Xinhuanet) -- Chinese leaders and senior officials,
including President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao, have watched the launch of
China's second manned spacecraft Shenzhou-6 Wednesday.
Hu arrived at the Beijing Aerospace Command and Control Centeran hour
earlier before the blastoff, listening to the work report and then watching the
launch which started at nine in the morning.
Wen, who was on hand at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest
China during the launch, was present at the send-off ceremony early in the
morning for the two astronauts aboard the spacecraft.
The premier said at the launch center that the Shenzhou-5 carrying Yang
Liwei to the space two years ago had turned China's space dream into reality.
"You will once again show that the Chinese people have the will,confidence
and capability to mount scientific peaks ceaselessly," Wen told the two
astronauts Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng, wishing them to accomplish the glory
mission.
Other members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the
Chinese Communist Party Central Committee Jia Qinglin, Zeng Qinghong, Wu
Guanzheng, Li Changchun and Luo Gan were presentrespectively at the Beijing
command center and the Jiuquan satellite launch base.
Jiang Zemin on Wednesday extended congratulation to the launchand wished a
complete success to the second manned space program.
At 9:00 a.m., Shenzhou-6 blast off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center
in northwest China atop a Long March II F carrierrocket. The launch was declared
a success 39 minutes later.
The Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center and the Beijing Aerospace Command and
Control Center on the occasion turned into a scene of jubilation as spectors
cheered the success.
Chinese President Hu Jintao at the Beijing Aerospace Command and Control
Center hailed the successful launch of Shenzhou-6, hoping that all concerned
parties would make close coordination to accomplish their job with high quality
and high standard, so as to ensure the success of the spaceflight this time and
to achieve the triumphal return of the spacecraft and the astronauts.
In a brief a speech at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, Chinese Premier
Wen Jiabao, who arrived in Jiuquan on Tuesday evening, expressed congratulations
for all scientists and military officers participating in this manned
spaceflight mission, noting that all working staff make their laborious efforts
to conquer lots of difficulties in technology and achieve important progress.
"The achievement in the launch of Shenzhou-6 will be recorded in the
country's glorious history," the Premier said.
China's space program, which is purely for peaceful purposes, is a
contribution to human's science and peace, Wen said, adding that China is
willing to cooperate with other nations in the development of space science and
technology.
China's manned space mission with the Shenzhou-6 spacecraft isthe country's
first multi-manned and multi-day spaceflight andthe first human-participated
space scientific experiment program, Wen said.
Shenzhou-6's successful liftoff and precise entry into the orbit was the
first important step for the spaceflight this time, Wen said, hoping that all
working staff would continue their efforts to fully accomplish the whole
mission.
Other senior officials of the party and state, including HuiLiangyu, Liu
Qi, Liu Yunshan, Wu Yi, Zhou Yongkang, He Guoqiang, Guo Boxiong and others were
also present at the Beijing Aerospace Command and Control Center to see the
launching process.
China firstly experienced the manned spaceflight in October of 2003 with
the Shenzhou-5. The launch of Shenzhou-6 spacecraft atopa Long March II F
carrier rocket on Wednesday morning is the 46th success of China's space launch,
and the 88th liftoff of Long March series.