The head of NASA took part in talks with his Chinese counterpart Sunday during the US space agency's first visit to China, AFP reported. As part of a six-day trip to China, NASA chief Michael Griffin toured the Chinese Academy of Space Technology before meeting with Sun Laiyan, head of the China National Space Administration. Griffin is scheduled to meet with China's minister of science and technology on Monday as well as giving a speech at the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The trip is intended to give NASA a chance to learn about China's space program. However, officials for the space agency said plans for the visit to include a tour of the rocket launch center in the Gobi desert "did not work out". Beijing is keen to cooperate with the US on space exploration but Washington has been hesitant due to concerns about the involvement of China's military in its space program. China launched its second manned space mission last year and wants to send an unmanned probe to the moon by 2010.
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