On Wednesday, October 15, 2003 38 year old Yang, Liwei China 's history making astronaut set off onboard the Shenzhou V, to become China 's 1 st manned mission into space. The Long March 2-F rocket carrying the Shenzhou Spacecraft blasted off just seconds after 9a.m. local time. The spacecraft entered orbit at about 9:10 a.m. Pilot Yang's words were, “I FEEL GOOD.” The craft is expected to make 14 orbit piloted by former air force pilot Yang.
China 's first astronaut Yang Liwei has returned to Earth, safe and sound, which marks the complete success of China 's first manned space mission. At present, he's in the Space Center in Beijing , where he'll stay for a period of time for further examination and monitoring. Here's Feng Guohui with details on the touchdown of the return capsule and the condition of Yang Liwei.
China 's space authority has revealed that the selection process for astronauts for the future Shenzhou-6 project will begin after the Spring Festival next year.