Posted: Mon, Dec 23, 2002, 10:21 AM ET (1521 GMT)
The fourth and perhaps final unmanned test flight of China's Shenzhou spacecraft may take place by New Year's Day, SpaceDaily reported Monday. The report noted that Wen Wei Po, a Chinese-language newspaper published in Hong Kong, published an article Wednesday claiming that the launch would occur in the last week of 2002. The Long March 2F booster used to launch Shenzhou spacecraft is currently sitting on the launch pad at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, according to the article. There has been considerable speculation about the launch date of Shenzhou 4, with most reports estimating the launch to take place no later than early 2003. A successful Shenzhou 4 launch is expected to clear the way for the first manned Chinese launch, perhaps later in 2003.

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•  SpaceDaily article