China's space progress could motivate NASA: "A local member of NASA's advisory council predicts China's entry into the exclusive club of manned space exploration will give new urgency to efforts to preserve America's leading role in space. 'I believe it is going to get a lot of people's attention,'' Mark McDaniel, a Huntsville lawyer, said this morning.

"McDaniel said his service on the council has convinced him that NASA's manned space program is the reason the United States is a world leader in educating scientists and other researchers. 'It inspires our youth to be explorers and pioneers,' he said. 'We can't let down.'"