China plans to complete space station by 2022

China plans to send four crewed missions and same number of cargo craft to complete work on its permanent station within about two years, officials said after launch of a newly designed craft aboard latest heavy-lift rocket.

anuncement by country's crewed program furr cements China's aspirations to rival U.S., Europe, Russia and private companies in outer exploration.

unmanned craft and its return capsule were flung into aboard a Long March 5B rocket in its debut flight Tuesday evening from Wenchang launch center in sourn island province of Hainan.

capsule is reportedly an improvement on Shenzhou capsule based on former Soviet Union’s Soyuz model and can carry six astronauts rar than current three.

China earlier launched an experimental station that later crashed back through atmosphere, and plans to build a larger facility with multiple modules to rival scale of International Station.

China’s burgeoning program achieved a milestone last year by landing a craft on largely unexplored dark side of moon and has plans to launch a lander and rover on Mars.

program has developed rapidly, especially since its first crewed mission in 2003, and has sought cooperation with ncies in Europe and elsewhere.

U.S., however, has banned most cooperation with China out of national security concerns, keeping China from participating in International Station and prompting it to grually develop its own equipment. new Long March 5B rocket has been specially designated to propel modules of future station into orbit.

China is also among three countries planning missions to Mars for this summer. United States is launching a lander, China has a lander-orbiter combo, and United Arab Emirates is sending an orbiter.

craft can only be launched to Mars every two years, to take vant of best possible lineup between Earth and its neighboring planet.