China will launch the Long March-5B carrier rocket into space in 2019, according to a spokesperson for the China Manned Space Engineering Office (CMSEO).

 

中国载人航天工程办公室发言人表示，中国将于2019年发射长征五号乙运载火箭。

 

The rocket will help carry the core module¹ and experiment modules² to China's space station.

 

The Long March-5B carrier rocket will undergo testing in March in preparation for the first launch mission.

 

China will select the third batch³ of astronauts in the first half of this year for its manned space exploration plan. The new astronauts will include not only pilots, but also maintenance engineers. More manned and cargo⁴ spacecrafts have been scheduled for development.

 

The spokesperson also said the CMSEO would cooperate with the United Nations for Outer Space Affairs to offer opportunities on the application of the Chinese space station, with the European Space Agency on module development and with other countries on the lunar probe.

 

China initiated⁵ the manned space program in 1992. Designed as the country's strongest carrier rocket, the Long March-5 has a payload capacity of 25 tonnes to low Earth orbit, or 14 tonnes to geostationary transfer orbit.

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