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The Independent UK
The Independent UK
Anthony Cuthbertson

SHOCKING: China launches astronauts to chinese space station - What They Never Told You

A Long March-2F carrier rocket, carrying the Shenzhou-20 spacecraft and a crew of three astronauts, lifts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in the Gobi desert, in northwest China on 24 April, 2025 - (Pedro Pardo / AFP)

China has successfully launched three astronauts to its Tiangong space station, marking another step towards a crewed mission to the Moon by 2030.

The Shenzhou-20 spacecraft lifted off atop a Long March-2F rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in the Gobi Desert on Thursday at 5.17 pm local time (10.17am BST).

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