Tiangong program

Following Tiangong-1, a more advanced space laboratory complete with cargo spacecraft, dubbed Tiangong-2, was launched on 15 September 2016.

Thus, Mao announced his decision to develop China's own strategic weapons, including associated missiles.

After the launch of mankind's first artificial satellite, Sputnik 1 by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957, Mao decided to put China on an equal footing with the superpowers ("我们也要搞人造卫星"), using Project 581 with the idea of putting a satellite in orbit by 1959 to celebrate the 10th anniversary of the PRC's founding.

Mao and Zhou Enlai began the PRC's crewed space program on 14 July 1967.

[9] Project 714 was officially adopted in April 1971 with the goal of sending two astronauts into space by 1973 aboard the Shuguang spacecraft.

[citation needed] In 2000, the first model of the planned space station was unveiled at Expo 2000 in Hanover, Germany.

Overall length of the station would be around 20 m, with a total mass of under 40 metric tons, with possibility of expansion through addition of further modules.

In 2007, plans for an 8-metric ton "space laboratory" being launched in 2010 under the designation of Tiangong-1 were made public.

[16] The full 60-metric ton space station will support three astronauts for long-term habitation.

[5] However, all the objectives of these two stations were later merged into one project,[23] and the size scaled down to less than 10,000 kg (22,000 lb).

[24] The station made a controlled reentry on 19 July 2019 and burned up over the South Pacific Ocean.

The complex will weigh approximately 60,000 kg (130,000 lb) and will support three astronauts for long-term habitation.

[5] The public is being asked to submit suggestions for names and symbols to adorn the space station and cargo spacecraft.

"Considering past achievements and the bright future, we feel that the crewed space program should have a more vivid symbol and that the future space station should carry a resounding and encouraging name", Wang Wenbao, director of the office, said at the news conference.

[34] In 2010, European Space Agency ESA Director-General Jean-Jacques Dordain stated that his agency was ready to propose to the four other partners (CSA, JAXA, NASA, and Roscosmos) that China, India, and South Korea be invited to join the ISS partnership.