China this week revealed that two of its astronauts conducted a secret spacewalk around the Tiangong space station, marking the second extravehicular operation in the past three months.
Two crew members of Shenzhou 15, dubbed the “Dream Crew”, successfully exited the space station to complete “scheduled tasks” with the help of another crew member, who remained in the cabin along with one in support on the ground, its space agency CMSA reported.
But the announcement came after the operation was successfully completed, which some reports have raised concerns about why China’s space agency has chosen not to announce the latest out-of-cabin excursion.
This screen image captured at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center on Feb. 9, 2023, shows Shenzhou-15 taikonaut Fei Junlong returning to the Wentian Space Station’s laboratory module with equipment. The Shenzhou-15 taikonauts aboard China’s orbiting space station Tiangong completed their first spacewalk on Friday at 00:16 Beijing time, according to the China Manned Space Agency. (Photo by Liu Fang/Xinhua via Getty Images)
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“For the Communist Party of China (CPC), less transparency means more power, the power to deter, misinform and disarm enemies, reflecting China’s ancient strategic values,” Rick Fisher, senior member of the International Assessment and Strategy Center. Digital. “Furthermore, the CCP in all areas, not just space, seeks hegemon status, which means it cannot be held accountable to rules or value systems not created by the CCP, so the CCP has no problem not warn other nations of its space activities”.
CMSA made a vague announcement last month that the crew was planning their first extravehicular operation, led by mission commander Fei Junlong, which was then executed on Feb. 9.
The three-man crew has been on the space station since November 29, 2022, marking nearly 95 days in orbit.
The “Dream Crew” took over from Shenzhou 14’s crew aboard Tiangong, which also marked the first successful handover to China by a manned crew.
This image captured at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China shows the crew of Shenzhou-15 and Shenzhou-14 waving after a historic rally in space on Nov. 30, 2022. The three astronauts aboard China’s Shenzhou- 15 entered the country’s space station and met with another trio of astronauts Wednesday, a historic meeting that added the workforce of the orbiting space laboratory to six for the first time. (Photo by Guo Zhongzheng/Xinhua via Getty Images)
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International space activities have once again made their way to the forefront of geopolitics, particularly after Russia said last July it would leave the International Space Station amid strained relations with the West, signifying a significant shift in relations spacecraft, which I’ve been kept away from by land-based politics in recent decades.
But space dynamics are also changing, and Moscow and Beijing have already tried to strengthen their orbital ties.
“The CCP’s disregard for transparency in space is already a global danger,” Fisher said, adding that this threat will extend to its lunar ambitions.
Russia and China in November signed an agreement to develop a joint lunar station by 2035, which will involve building a station both in orbit and on the lunar surface.
This screen image captured at the Beijing Aerospace Control Center on Feb. 9, 2023, shows Shenzhou-15 taikonaut Fei Junlong returning to the Wentian Space Station’s laboratory module after finishing EVAs’ extravehicular activities. The Shenzhou-15 taikonauts aboard China’s orbiting space station Tiangong completed their first spacewalk on Friday at 00:16 Beijing time, according to the China Manned Space Agency. (Photo by Liu Fang/Xinhua via Getty Images) (Photo by Liu Fang/Xinhua via Getty Images)
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They also initiated two missions that will be flown before the space station is completed, one of which will take samples from the moon and deliver them to Earth, while the other will test lunar landing and cargo delivery capabilities.
The United States has also said it will plan another trip to the moon in 2025 for the first time in over half a century, which will also mark the first time humanity has set foot on the moon in over 50 years.
