Jan 17, 2013 |
China to launch 20 spacecrafts in 2013
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(Nanowerk News) China plans to launch 20 spacecrafts this year, including the country's third lunar probe Chang'e-3 and manned spacecraft Shenzhou-10, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) announced Wednesday.
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The country is scheduled to conduct a manned space docking test between orbiting target module Tiangong-1 and Shenzhou-10, the corporation said during an internal work conference.
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The Chang'e-3 moon probe is expected to land and stay there during the second stage of the country's lunar probe program, it said.
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According to CASC, by 2020, China will have more than 200 spacecrafts operating in orbit, accounting for about 20 percent of the world's total.
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