Andy Wong / AP
The Long March 2F rocket carrying the Shenzhou 10 capsule blasts off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on Tuesday.
By John Newland, Staff Writer, NBC News
China launched its latest manned spacecraft Tuesday on a 15-day mission to carry supplies to the country's orbiting laboratory.
Carrying three astronauts, the Shenzou-10 spacecraft blasted off as scheduled at 5:38 p.m. local time (5:38 a.m. ET) from a launchpad in the Gobi desert. The launch was broadcast live on Chinese state television.
Congratulations poured in from around the world on Twitter as the rocket gracefully made its way toward space after what appeared to be a trouble-free launch.
The launch marked China's fifth manned space mission, according to the official New China News Agency.
The Tiangong-1?laboratory astronauts with which the spacecraft?will dock was launched in September 2011, the agency said, adding that the government hopes to build its own space station around 2020.
The mission that began Tuesday will focus on docking maneuvers with the space lab, as well as testing methods of human and material transport, all of which are crucial to building a full space station,?government spokeswoman Wu Ping said at a Monday news conference.
During the mission, the astronauts --?Nie Haisheng, Zhang Xiaoguang and Wang Yaping?-- also will give science lessons to students back on Earth, according to a government statement.?
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