Tracking stations for the Shenzhou 7 mission ready

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Source: CCTV.com | 09-25-2008 13:32

The tracking stations for the Shenzhou 7 mission are ready in position around the globe. Tests on Wednesday showed that the 16 stations, both in and outside China, are functioning well.

The tracking station chain will conduct the longest ever  monitoring of spacecraft.

Their biggest challenge will be monitoring the space walk, which is expected to last for over 40 minutes. The stations are to relay images of every movement by the astronauts back to the earth in real time. They're arranged along a distance of over 10,000 kilometers across the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian and the Pacific. The tracking station chain will conduct the longest ever monitoring of spacecraft.

Zhu Mincai, director of Beijing Aerospace Command & Control Cen., said, "It's like a relay, the stations carry out the tracking mission one by one. There will be seamless monitoring of the space walk process."

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Editor:Zhang Ning