Wang Yaping
Wang Yaping | |
|---|---|
| Born | April 1978 or January 1980 |
| Space career | |
| Shenzhou astronaut | |
| Rank | Captain |
| Selection | Chinese Group 2 [1] |
| Missions | Shenzhou 10 |
Captain Wang Yaping (simplified Chinese: 王亚平; traditional Chinese: 王亞平; pinyin: Wáng Yàpíng; born January 1980[dubious – discuss] in Yantai, Shandong) is a Chinese military pilot and an astronaut.[2] Wang was the second female astronaut to be named by the Chinese authorities, and the second Chinese woman in space.
Career
Wang is a captain in the People's Liberation Army Air Force.[3]
She was a candidate for the space mission Shenzhou 9 in 2012.[4] However, Liu Yang was selected over her for the historic mission of the first Chinese female space traveller.[5] She was a member of the backup crew for SZ-9.[6]
Wang became the second Chinese female astronaut as the mission commander of the Shenzhou 10 spaceship crew, which is currently orbiting the earth, and of the Tiangong-1 orbiting space station with which it docked. [7] She was the first member of the crew announced, in April, while the remainder of the crew were announced in June.[6] Wang Yaping was one of only two women in space on the 50th anniversary of Vostok 6, the first spaceshot by a woman, Valentina Tereshkova. The other woman in space on 16 June 2013 was Karen Nyberg, an American astronaut aboard the International Space Station.[8] While aboard Tiangong-1, Wang conducted scientific experiments and taught a physics lesson to Chinese students by live television broadcast.[9]
Controversy
According to the official Shenzhou 10 report, Wang Yaping's birth date is stated as "January 1980," which is incongruent with that of the Shenzhou 9 report. In the previous report, her birth date was "April, 1978."[10]
Personal life
Wang is married, which one former official claimed is required for all women who are part of the Chinese space program.[5] However, this requirement has been officially denied by the director of the China Astronaut Centre, stating that this is a preference but not a strict limitation.[11][12]
References
- ^ Xinhua (2011-10-31). "China mulls over sending female "taikonauts" into space". Xinhua.
- ^ Identity of one of the Chinese female taikonaut candidates revealed NASAspaceflight.com
- ^ Spacefacts biography
- ^ "China readies three taikonauts for station visit". Planetary Society.
- ^ a b Space.com, "China Unveils Astronaut Crew, 1st Female Spaceflyer, for Saturday Launch", 15 June 2012, Clara Moskowitz
- ^ a b Morris Jones (3 April 2013). "Shenzhou's Shadow Crew". Space Daily.
- ^ "China to launch Shenzhou-10 manned spacecraft on June 11". Xinhua. June 10, 2012. Retrieved June 10, 2012.
- ^ Ken Kremer (16 June 2013). "Cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova; 1st Woman in Space 50 Years Ago! Ready for Mars". Universe Today.
- ^ Clark, Stephen (11 June 2013). "Successful start for China's fifth human spaceflight". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 11 June 2013.
- ^ "Female Astronaut - Shenzhou 9 Docking Mission with Tiangong-1". China Network Television. Retrieved June 11, 2013.
- ^ "For Liu Yang, sexism is still the final frontier". Retrieved June 17, 2012.
- ^ "Exclusive interview: Astronauts selection process". CCTV News. CNTV. June 16, 2012. Retrieved June 17, 2012.
External links
See also
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