TOKYO, Nov 29 (KUNA) -- China launched the manned spaceship Shenzhou-15 on Tuesday night, with three astronauts onboard due to meet with their colleagues on the country's space station and conduct a work handover.
The spaceship, carried by the Long March-2F Y15 rocket, blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, the state-run Xinhua News Agency reported, citing a statement by China Manned Space Agency (CMSA).
The Shenzhou-15 astronauts will, for the first time in China's space history, conduct an in-orbit rotation with the Shenzhou-14 crew, who were sent to the space station in June, according to CMSA.
The three Shenzhou-15 astronauts will stay in orbit for about six months and return to the ground in May next year, according to the plan.
During the mission, the Shenzhou-15 crew will carry out verification of long-term residence in China's space station at its three-module configuration.
They will also unlock, install and test 15 scientific experiment cabinets, and carry out more than 40 experiments and testing in the fields of space science research and application, space medicine, and space technology. (end) mk.gb