Science | China China Now 3rd Country to Complete Space Feat Crew to spend 6 days on space lab after successful docking By Mark Russell Posted Jun 18, 2012 6:33 AM CDT Copied China's astronauts Jing Haipeng, center, Liu Wang, left, and Liu Yang sit inside the Shenzhou-9 manned spacecraft while conducting docking with the Tiangong-1 space lab module earlier today. (AP Photo/Beijing Aerospace Control Center via Xinhua) China has officially joined the US and Russia as just the third country in the world to have completed a manned space docking, reports CNN. Earlier today the Shenzhou-9 spacecraft docked with the orbiting Tiangong-1, the next step in the Middle Kingdom's ambitious five-year plan for space exploration. The three-person crew, which includes China's first female astronaut, will spend six days on the Tiangong-1 performing "scientific experiments, technical tests, and physical exercises," according to China's official news agency. You can get a full run-down of China's space plans over at NASA Space Flight. Read These Next In the early morning hours in East Hollywood, chaos. This is why you don't wear metal in MRI rooms. CEO resigns after appearance on Kiss Cam. The latest in the generation wars: the 'Gen Z stare.' Report an error