China has launched two astronauts into space on a mission to dock with an experimental space station. The launch marks the latest stage in the country's developing space program.
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China: Space launch tests permanent space station
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The Shenzhou 11 mission took off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on the edge of the Gobi Desert in northern China at 7:30 a.m. on Monday morning (2330 UTC Sunday) aboard a Long March-2F carrier rocket.
Space program commander-in-chief General Zhang Youxia declared the launch a success 16 minutes later. Defense Minister Fan Changlong then read a congratulatory message from President Xi Jinping, calling for China's astronauts to explore space "more deeply and more broadly."
On board the space ship are astronauts Jing Haipeng, who is flying his third mission, and 37-year-old Chen Dong. "It is any astronaut's dream and pursuit to be able to perform many space missions," Jing, who will celebrate his 50th birthday during his time in space, told a briefing Sunday.
Tiangong 2 space laboratory
Within two days, the spacecraft is due to dock with the Tiangong 2 space laboratory which was sent into space last month. The astronauts, also known as taikonauts, will spend about a month on board the experimental station which is the first stage in China's plans to set up a permanent manned space station by 2022.
An earlier Tiangong 1 experimental space station was launched in 2011. It went out of service in March after docking with three visiting spacecraft and extending its mission for two years.
"This mission is characterized by its longer duration and more tests," Chen Dong told reporters in a televised news conference. "We will focus on improving our ability to handle emergencies in orbit, medical first aid, mutual rescue capabilities and space experiments."
China has said its space program is for peaceful purposes, but the US Defense Department has highlighted China's increasing capabilities, suggesting it was pursuing activities aimed at preventing adversaries from using space-based assets in a crisis.
However, on Monday, the US space agency NASA extended its congratulations via social media.
China-led space missions
China was prevented from taking part in the International Space Station because of US concerns about the military character of its programs.
Chinese officials are reported to be offering to finance the missions of other countries to the Tiangong 2 space laboratory.
A fourth spacecraft launch site was opened at Wenchang on China's southernmost island province of Hainan in June.
China is developing a Long March 5 heavy-lift rocket to launch Tiangong 2's additional components.
The space program has planned 20 missions for this year, and aims to land a rover on Mars by 2020.
China's ambitious space odyssey in pictures
China's goal to catch up with major space powers like the US and Russia has moved a step forward, with the nation flagging off its longest manned mission. Beijing aims to have a permanent space outpost by 2022.
Image: Picture-Alliance/dpa/H. H. Young
3,2,1… Shenzhou-11 in space
With two astronauts on board, the Shenzhou-11 - or the "Divine Vessel" - rocket blasted off into space early in the morning on Monday, October 17. It is the sixth time China has launched astronauts into space. The spacecraft will take two days to reach the Tiangong-2 space lab, which was launched last month.
Image: Picture-Alliance/dpa/H. H. Young
Experienced astronauts
The two-member crew, made up of astronauts Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong, will remain on board for 30 days. They will conduct research Projects, including those relating to repairing equipment in-orbit, aerospace medicine and atomic space clocks, reported the official Xinhua news agency. Jing, the mission commander, is on his third mission into orbit and will celebrate his 50th birthday in space.
Image: Picture-Alliance/dpa/H. H. Young
Tiangong is waiting
China launched the space lab Tiangong-2, or "Heavenly Palace-2," in September. The lab, which is nine meters long and weighs 13 tons, is in orbit 393 kilometers above Earth. It has two cabins - a hermetically sealed experiment chamber that also serves as the living quarters, and a resources store holding supplies such as solar panels, engines and batteries.
Image: picture alliance/dpa/A. Xin
An important achievement
The launch of the Tiangong-2 space lab had an enormous symbolic significance, said Wu Ping, Deputy Director of China's manned space engineering office. That's because the lab was farther, bigger and had a greater life span than its predecessor, she added.
China used the Long March-2F carrier rocket to launch the Shenzhou-11 mission. The 464 ton, 52-meter-tall Long March-2F carrier rocket blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, a military-operated facility on the edge of the Gobi Desert.
Image: picture-alliance/Photoshot/Y. Zhiyuan
An ambitious space program
China is intensifying efforts to build up its capabilities in space. To that effect, it plans to send its first space cargo ship Tianzhou-1 to the space lab in April 2017. The cargo ship will allow China to replenish the lab with fuel and other supplies.
Image: Reuters
China wants its own space station
The Chinese astronauts will conduct experiments on various space-related technologies and perform docking maneuvers. They are necessary for the country to achieve its goal of setting up its own space station. If, as planned, the International Space Station (shown in the picture) ends its mission in 2024, China would be the only country with a permanent post in outer space.
Image: Reuters/NASA
A 'Made in China' Mars rover
China recently published pictures of probes it wants to send to Mars in future to explore the planet. But so far, there have only been computer simulations showing a six-wheeled rover and a related landing craft. As Xinhua reported, the remote-controlled probe will conduct tests on the Martian surface and look for traces of water during a three-month mission to the planet by the end of the decade.
Image: SASTIND
The predecessor
The first Chinese space laboratory, Tiangong-1, was launched in September 2011. It went out of service in March after docking with three visiting spacecraft and extending its mission for two years.
Image: picture-alliance/dpa
The first docking maneuver on Tiangong-1
Three spaceships had docked with Tiangong-1 before the lab went out of service. In 2011, the unmanned Shenzhou-8 mission (shown in photo) was able to dock with Tiangong-1 twice with a gap of 11 days. In 2012, Jing, the commander of the current Shenzhou-11 mission, successfully completed the docking maneuver.