An anonymous person, who claimed to have inside knowledge of the contract negotiation, sent The Sun newspaper a set of Museum internal document which contained details of the business transaction. This person charged that the high cost of the exhibition was "a waste of taxpayers' money", particularly when the Shenzhou spacecraft was only a "replication".

The entire exhibition costs organizers $15 million HK ($2 million US). The Science Museum hopes to attract 100,000 visitors.

Representatives from the Museum and the Leisure and Cultural Services Department (LCSD), which jointly organized the exhibition, held a press conference in the afternoon to offer explanation and clarification.

Chief Curator of Hong Kong Science Museum Yip Chee-kuen said that as early as a month ago, the State Council informed the Museum that the Shenzhou reentry module from last November's maiden voyage would stay in China.

LCSD pointed out that the Shenzhou mockup in the exhibition was an exact copy of the flown vehicle. The flown module was not allowed to leave China because it was needed in on-going analysis and testing. The findings would provide additional information that would be used in refining the Shenzhou 2 spacecraft.

Wang Liheng, Director of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, provided further clarification: "Media reports that the exhibition is filled with duplicate models is incorrect.

"The payload fairing shroud and the escape tower of CZ-2F erected in the Museum square, the Shenzhou modules and the descent parachutes are identical to the components that have been flown in space.

They are made of the same material and have the same structure, and can be used in various tests. The Shenzhou spacecraft displayed here is a real article. It just hasn't flown in space."

Wang's comment suggests that the Shenzhou spacecraft in the exhibition is an engineering model that can be modified to use in an actual mission.

Wang added, "The connecting joints and the entire Shenzhou reentry module from the last mission suffered charring from separating from the propulsion and orbital modules and atmospheric friction during reentry. The reentry module can no longer be stacked to new components, thus a substitute with the same structure and material is used in the exhibit.

"To make up for the disappointment [of not seeing the flown Shenzhou hardware], China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation decides to include in the exhibition a recoverable satellite [FSW-2 3] which employs similar structural principles and technologies."

Even though the flown Shenzhou module is not at the exhibition, Yip Chee-kuen says that scientific and educational value of the spacecraft on display here remains the same.

Despite the controversy more than 3000 visitors went through the gates in each of the first two days of the exhibition.

On the first day of the exhibition, more than a hundred visitors lined up for tickets before the Museum opened its doors.

Many students, families and groups went to see the exhibition in the last days of the summer holiday.

Visitors give rave reviews on the exhibition. A couple of senior age said that they were proud of China's space achievement so they travelled to the Museum to see the exhibition. They both showed their thumbs up after seeing it. The exhibition runs until October 22.

Chinese Aerospace Science and Technology Exhibition

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