On Thursday, China's authorities successfully sent the first core module of its own space station (Tianhe cabin), into a specific orbit via a Long March-5B Y2 carrier rocket from Wenchang spaceport in South China's Hainan Province, according to China's media.
According to international reports, the core module is considered the largest spacecraft developed by China, was launched into low earth orbit by the 53.7-meter-long (China's Long March-5B rocket).
In an official statement on Thursday by Chinese President Xi Jinping, the leader of the Communist country offered his congratulations regarding the successful launch of the core module of China's space station.
"I hope you will vigorously carry forward both the spirit of 'Two Bombs and One Satellite' and the spirit of manned spaceflight, be self-dependent and innovative to achieve victory in space station construction, and contribute to building a modern socialist country!" the statement said.
Furthermore, he noted that the mission's success marks the entry of China's space station construction into the full implementation stage, which lays a solid foundation for follow-up tasks.
In this regard, the 22-ton core module will serve as the management and control center for China's future space station while hosting three astronauts for long-term in-orbit missions, according to CNN.
Lately, Russia has also revealed that it will leave the ISS project in 2025 and plans to build its own space station that could launch in 2030 -- if Russian President Vladimir Putin gives the green light to the national scheme.
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