BEIJING (Reuters) - China will launch its second experimental space laboratory late on Thursday and another manned space mission next month, the government said, part of a broader plan to have a permanent manned space station in service around 2022.
Advancing China's space program is a priority for Beijing, with President Xi Jinping calling for the country to establish itself as a space power, and apart from its civilian ambitions, Beijing has tested anti-satellite missiles.
China insists its space program is for peaceful purposes, but the U.S. Defense Department has highlighted its increasing space capabilities, saying it was pursuing activities aimed to prevent adversaries from using space-based assets in a crisis.
In a manned space mission in 2013, three Chinese astronauts spent 15 days in orbit and docked with an experimental space laboratory, the Tiangong 1, or "Heavenly Palace".
China will launch the Tiangong 2 just after 10 p.m. (0200 GMT) on Thursday, a space program spokeswoman told a news conference carried live from the remote launch site in Jiuquan, in the Gobi desert.
The Shenzhou 11 spacecraft, which will carry two astronauts and dock with Tiangong 2, will be launched sometime next month, mission spokeswoman Wu Ping said on Wednesday.
The astronauts expect to remain in Tiangong 2 for about one month, Wu added.
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