Shenzhou-12: China launches first three-man crew to space station

A Long March 2F rocket transporting the Shenzhou-12, or "Divine Vessel", bound for the space station module Tianhe blasted off at 9:22 a.m. Beijing time (0122 GMT) from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern Gansu province.

Beijing: China launched a spacecraft on Thursday carrying three astronauts to part of a space station still under construction for the longest stay in low Earth orbit by any Chinese national. A Long March 2F rocket transporting the Shenzhou-12, or "Divine Vessel", bound for the space station module Tianhe blasted off at 9:22 a.m. Beijing time (0122 GMT) from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern Gansu province. Shenzhou-12 is the third of 11 missions - four of which will be crewed - needed to complete China`s first full-fledged space station. Construction began in April with the launch of Tianhe, the first and largest of three modules.