Posted: Tue, Sep 27, 2005, 8:14 AM ET (1214 GMT)
China will launch Shenzhou 6, its second manned mission, on October 13, Chinese media outlets reported Monday. According to those reports, Shenzhou 6 will lift off at 11 am local time (11pm EDT October 12); the timing of the launch is designed to allow personnel more preparation time and avoid launching at night or early in the morning. The spacecraft is expected to carry two astronauts and spend five days in orbit; during the mission they will spend time in both the reentry capsule and orbital module, conducting a number of unspecified instruments. Chinese officials told the official Xinhua article that they have not announced a specific date in part because of uncertainties such as weather conditions. China has not announced who will fly on the mission, but said that two astronaut trainees, Zhai Zhigang and Nie Haisheng, were "the strongest group with the greatest confidence" for the mission.
