Shenzhou-12 

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• China launched a spacecraft Shenzhou-12, carrying three astronauts to part of a space station still under construction for the longest stay in low Earth orbit by any Chinese national. 

• China is the third country after the former Soviet Union and the United States to carry out a manned mission on its own. 

• Shenzhou-12 means Divine Vessel. It will be the third out of 11 missions that China needs to complete the space station by 2022.

• This is the first of two manned space missions planned for this year, part of an intense schedule of launches aimed at completing the Chinese space station in 2022.