China launches third, final space station component

China on October 31 launched the third and final module to complete its permanent space station, realizing a more than decade-long endeavour to maintain a constant crewed presence in orbit.

Mengtian was blasted into space at 3:39 p.m. (3:39 a.m. ET) on October 31 from the Wenchang Satellite Launch Centre in the southern island province of Hainan, NBC News reports.

A large crowd of amateur photographers, space enthusiasts and assorted lookers-on watched the lift-off from an adjoining beach.

Many waved Chinese flags and wore T-shirts emblazoned with the characters for China, reflecting the deep national pride invested in the space program and the technological progress it represents.

Mengtian, or "Celestial Dream", joins Wentian as the second laboratory module for the station, collectively known as Tiangong, or "Celestial Palace". Both are connected to the Tianhe core module where the crew lives and works.

Like its predecessors, Mengtian was launched aboard a Long March-5B Y4 carrier rocket - a member of China's most powerful family of launch vehicles.

Mengtian was due to spend 13 hours in flight before reaching Tiangong which is populated by a crew of two male and one female astronauts, according to the China Manned Space Agency.

Chen Dong, Cai Xuzhe and Liu Yang arrived in early June for a six-month stay on board, during which they will complete the station’s assembly, conduct spacewalks and carry out additional experiments.

Following Mengtian’s arrival, an additional un-crewed Tianzhou cargo craft is due to dock with the station next month with another crewed mission scheduled for December, at which time crews may overlap as Tiangong has sufficient room to accommodate six astronauts.

Mengtian weighs in at about 20 tons with a length of 58.7 feet, and a diameter of 13.8 feet. It will provide space for science experiments in zero gravity, an airlock for exposure to the vacuum of space, and a small robotic arm to support extravehicular payloads.

The already orbiting 23-ton Wentian laboratory is designed for science and biology experiments and is heavier than any other single-module spacecraft currently in space.