By AFPMore by this AuthorBeijing,China said Tuesday it will launch a new rocket at 6pm (1000 GMT), in a test of its ambitions to operate a permanent space station and send astronauts to the Moon. A new large carrier rocket -- Long March 5B -- is expected to lift off from the Wenchang launch site in the southern island of Hainan, the China Manned Space Agency said in a statement. The rocket is expected to carry a next-generation spacecraft that is supposed to one day transport astronauts to a space station that China plans to complete by 2022 -- and eventually to the Moon. AdvertisementHUGE STRIDESThe United States is so far the only country to have been able to send humans to the Moon. A successful maiden flight of the 54-metre Long March 5B would reassure China, following failures of the 7A model in March and 3B model in April.

Source: Daily Nation May 05, 2020 10:07 UTC