China Successfully Sends 2 Astronauts to Space

Early this morning, China successfully launched Shenzhou-11 from the Gobi Desert.

Aboard the manned spacecraft are two male astronauts, Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong.

Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong at the Shenzhou-11 launch ceremony early this morning. This is Jing's third flight.

According to Xinhua, Shenzhou launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Gansu province. It was scheduled to take off at around 7.30am CST.

Shenzhou-11 launches into space early this morning.

Shenzhou-11 will take two days to dock with China's orbiting space lab, Tiangong-2. From there, the astronauts will stay in the space lab for 30 days, which will more than double China's national record for staying in space.

[Images via Xinhua]