China plans manned space launch

BEIJING — China will launch three astronauts this month to dock with an orbiting experimental module, and the crew might include its first female space traveler, a government news agency said Saturday.

A rocket carrying the Shenzhou 9 spacecraft was moved to a launch pad in China’s desert northwest on Saturday for the mid-June flight, the Xinhua News Agency said, citing an space program spokesman.
 
The three-member crew will dock with and live in the Tiangong 1 orbital module launched last year, Xinhua said.
 
The government has not said how long the mission will last.

Xinhua cited Niu Hongguang, deputy commander-in-chief of the manned space program, as saying the crew “might include female astronauts.” — AP