News item of interest

News like this is going to come more and more frequently as China has no trouble putting much of their new wealth into an aggressive space program. Looking at it from a global perspective, it is interesting that much of our spending and international capital is going into a Missile Defense Shield while other nations seem to be concentrating on exploration.

Asia's space race heats up as China launches first lunar orbiter
Asia's space race heated up on Wednesday as China launched its first lunar orbiter, an event hailed by the world's most populous nation as a milestone event in its global rise.

China's year-long expedition, costing 1.4 billion yuan (184 million dollars), kicks off a programme that aims to land an unmanned rover on the moon's surface by 2012 and put a man on the moon by about 2020.

The launch of Chang'e I, which will explore and map the moon's surface, came after Japan last month launched its first lunar probe and ahead of a similar mission planned by India for next year.

Chang'e I took off at 6:05 pm (1005 GMT) -- perfect timing for a national television audience that watched it live after repeatedly being told by the government-controlled press about the significance of the event.

President Hu Jintao issued his personal congratulations following the successful launch, according to a brief statement carried by the official Xinhua news agency less than 90 minutes after the take-off.

China has described the lunar orbiter as the third major milestone event for the nation's space programme, after developing rockets and satellites since the 1970s and sending men into orbit in 2003 and 2005.

"Flying to the moon is the nation's long cherished dream," Xinhua said.

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