A newly developed variation of the heavy-lift Long March-5 rocket arrived at Wenchang Satellite Launch Center in Hainan on Wednesday.
The Long March-5B is scheduled to launch an unmanned test ship for a new generation of manned spacecraft in April, according to China Manned Space Engineering Office. The spacecraft is developed to operate with China’s upcoming space station and later for manned lunar probing missions, the office announced when the test ship arrived at the launch center on January 20.
China’s space missions scheduled for this year include launching a Mars probe, launching the core module of its space station, and collecting moon surface samples. With the successful launch of the Long March-5 rocket in December, these missions are expected to be on track.