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Astronauts enter China's space station [video]

bbc.com

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Re: Astronauts enter China's space station [video]

#61

Post by Normal_gaussian »

dbosch wrote: post #56

they are not "astronauts", but taïkonauts. The chinese term for going into space. Astronauts are for US. Cosmonauts for Russians. and Spationauts for Europeans.

They are astronauts. Your definitions are off

https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/astronaut

https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/cosmonaut

https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/taikonaut

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/astronaut

http://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cosmonaut

[ Merriam-Webster doesn't define Taïkonaut ]

Re: Astronauts enter China's space station [video]

#62

Post by JustSomeNobody »

manarth wrote: post #53
exDM69 wrote: post #32

Earlier quoted context omitted.

As far as I know, there's no party on earth who could execute a space mission on one month notice. And such a mission would have very little capabilities due to poor preparation time. Whatever doomsday scenario you are concerned about, it's not a realistic goal.

And an impending catastrophe so urgent that it needed an immediate launch would be unlikely to leave Russia or China unaffected, so any breakdown in relations would be quickly put aside for the sake of [deflecting meteors/fighting alien invaders/saving the moon from being eaten by a giant space shark].

Sounds like a movie plot. This thread was going so well up top.

Re: Astronauts enter China's space station [video]

#63

Post by chiph »

manarth wrote: post #58
miaoever wrote: post #46

Earlier quoted context omitted.

no.

It sounds like there are mixed opinions on that - the Chinese docking system is reportedly a clone of the Russian APAS-89/APAS-95 docking system (which is also in use on the ISS). So it's possible, but there doesn't seem to be a definitive answer at the moment.

I would have thought there would have been a technology transfer amongst the spacefaring nations, so that just in case they could dock with each other.

Re: Astronauts enter China's space station [video]

#64

Post by manarth »

chiph wrote: post #63
manarth wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It sounds like there are mixed opinions on that - the Chinese docking system is reportedly a clone of the Russian APAS-89/APAS-95 docking system (which is also in use on the ISS). So it's possible, but there doesn't seem to be a definitive answer at the moment.

I would have thought there would have been a technology transfer amongst the spacefaring nations, so that just in case they could dock with each other.

That's basically the history of the APAS docking system [1], which was co-developed by American and Soviet engineers.

So why isn't it universal? As usual, XKCD has a compelling explanation: https://xkcd.com/927/

[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Androgynous_Peripheral_Attach_...

Re: Astronauts enter China's space station [video]

#65

Post by FlyingSnake »

Hondor wrote: post #44
kobeya wrote: post #37

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Then we should stop using the inaccurate "astronaut" and call them all cosmonauts.

Astronaut is the original English word. Cosmonaut is a transliteration from the Russian word for astronaut. So if we're speaking English, we should use astronaut regardless of the country they're from. Otherwise we're forced to invent silly new words that nobody understands like taikonaut and what will we call Indian astronauts or whoever's next? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Astronaut#Terminology

> what will we call Indian astronauts

They will be called 'Vyomnauts' apparently.

Re: Astronauts enter China's space station [video]

#66

Post by smileysteve »

exDM69 wrote: post #45
throwaway123098 wrote: post #14

Earlier quoted context omitted.

But we were not _really_ behind. We were about a year behind (if not less), and much was due to other American advantages: we didn't need huge rockets (which would launch humans into space) since American nuclear bombs were smaller. The reason we don't hear much about China is because that don't do much: Launch a man into space once a year? Land a rover on the Moon? That's 1960s news. If it would be more serious, the…

The big difference between the execution of the US and Soviet space races is that the Soviets produced the Soyuz - a very capable space craft and launch vehicle that still flies today. On top of that they pioneered space stations and long duration manned space missions. The US on the other hand built an impractically large moonshot rocket that was too expensive to keep on producing. Then the US moved on the the Space…

By going directly from the moon to shuttle, you conveniently forget Skylab.

Also, something about hubble.

Re: Astronauts enter China's space station [video]

#67

Post by smileysteve »

yitchelle wrote: post #11
jcoffland wrote: post #2

China has now done 6 crewed missions to space in the last 3 years. In that time, Russia has had 13 manned missions many of which NASA astronauts have hitched a ride on. NASA is still on the ground since discontinuing the shuttle program in 2011.

With so much at stake, is it possible for all nations to play together and strive for the better good when it comes to space exploration?

Yes! This is the concept between ISS! The idea that we are regularly sharing launch missions is a great work for international diplomacy.

Re: Astronauts enter China's space station [video]

#69

Post by mhurron »

jcoffland wrote: post #2

China has now done 6 crewed missions to space in the last 3 years. In that time, Russia has had 13 manned missions many of which NASA astronauts have hitched a ride on. NASA is still on the ground since discontinuing the shuttle program in 2011.

If it wasn't for the national dick waving contest that we call space exploration, it wouldn't matter that NASA isn't from the nation running a vehicle project. But out of everything that NASA does what gets attention? The fact that it's not the nation sending rockets up. Why? Because it's not about exploration and expanding knowledge, it's about dick waving.

I laugh at all this talk about going to Mars to save the human race. We're just going to show up, if we get there at all, and fuck it up just as hard as we have on Earth. We're a species of idiotic assholes.

Re: Astronauts enter China's space station [video]

#70

Post by JTon »

seanmcdirmid wrote: post #68

Aren't Chinese space travelers called Taikonauts? The title make it sounds like Americans are invading China's space station.

After a quick google, I believe you are correct. The term doesn't seem to be very well known outside of space circles, though. Maybe that's why the BBC opted for the familiar.
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