China tonight will launch its most ambitious space mission to date, including the program's first space walk, as this increasingly confident nation stakes a claim on the heavens while impressing people on Earth.
The Shenzhou 7 is slated to blast off from Inner Mongolia's Jiuquan launch pad this evening, with the walk scheduled for Friday, ground operations head Cui Jijun said, according to state media.
The nation's third manned mission will carry three astronauts, or "taikonauts" as they are known here, with mission leader Zhai Zhigang's expected 40-minute spacewalk relayed in a live broadcast.
Experts said this mission is the next logical step toward an expected Chinese space station and possible future moon landing.
Los Angeles Times
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