
China announced Wednesday that a veteran astronaut will lead two crew members on their first flight to the Tiangong space station, the latest milestone in the country's race to send a manned mission to the moon by 2030.
The Shenzhou-20 mission is scheduled to blast off at 5:17 pm Thursday (0917 GMT) from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, Lin Xiqiang, deputy director of the China Manned Space Agency, announced at a news conference.