"With goals laid out for a space lab and eventual space station, the planned first spacewalk during Shenzhou-7 mission is an important step toward those eventual goals for China's space exploration," Joan Johnson-Freese, a space expert at US Naval War College told Xinhua in a recent interview.

China has announced that the Shenzhou-7 spacecraft will lift off on Thursday night. This will be the third Chinese manned space mission, but the first time Chinese astronauts perform a spacewalk.

"Spacewalking is a critical capability for the assembly of a space lab or space station, and this first spacewalk will put China one step closer (toward the goals)," said Johnson-Freese, who is a famous expert studying the Chinese space program. She envisions that when China's Long March 5 launch vehicle becomes operational, then a Chinese space station and the potential for a manned lunar mission become real.

Spacewalks are inherently dangerous because the environment of space is so harsh and unforgiving for humans. "So, the fact that China is planning to use its own space suit -- which must be flexible for movement, provide life support for the astronaut, and yet protect against such hazards as micrometers -- shows significant technical achievement and confidence," She added.

"China is to be commended for its rapid advancements since Shenzhou-5 (in 2003)," Johnson-Freese said that she is certainly following the Shenzhou-7 mission. "It appears to me as part of an ambitious, yet incremental program for China's space exploration."

When asked about China's role in the international space exploration cooperation in the future, Johnson-Freese said China has certainly shown itself technical capability of playing a valuable role in a potential space partnership.

In a US Congress hearing on September 15, Johnson-Freese ever told the US- China Economic and Security Review Commission about the implications of space cooperation with China.

After Shenzhou-5 (on Oct. 15, 2003), "enthusiastic congratulations and invitations for expanded space cooperation were sent from Europe and Russia," she said. And just on Oct. 30, 2003, China joined an increasing consortium of countries working with Europe on development of the Galileo navigation satellite system.

"While the agreement remains a shell and the ultimate role China will play in Galileo is unclear, it is clear that other countries are willing and in fact anxious to work with China in Space," She said at that hearing. "That has significant planning implications for US."

However, she noted in the interview with Xinhua that space is part of a larger relationship between countries. For large-scale cooperation to be considered between the US and China, "I think other requirements will need to be met".

For example, it would be very useful if China could share information about its program, and decision making structure, as other countries do.

In the meantime, "I am an advocate of both dialogue and cooperation. I hope there will be opportunities for more dialogue between the US and China, reciprocity of visits and information sharing, and taking small steps toward cooperation, starting perhaps with space science and Earth science."

(Xinhua News Agency September 25, 2008)