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Two Chinese spacecraft successfully completed China's first space docking(对接) on early November 3, 2011,which has taken the country a step closer to building its own space station.
Nearly two days after its launch, the unmanned spacecraft Shenzhou 8 docked with the space lab module Tiangong I more than 343 km above the Earth surface. Shenzhou 8 and Tiangong I took apart after flying together for 12 days. On the
14th of November, the two spacecraftr finished the second docking. Then Shenzhou 8 parted from Tiangong I again and returned to the Earth safely on the 17th. Tiangong l is still travelling around the Earth in space.
Thatmarked another great leap for China's space programme and made China the third country in the world, after the United States and Russia, to master the space docking technique(空间对接技术).
The world's first space docking was achieved in 1966, when the manned US spacecraft Gemini 8 docked with an unmanned Agena Target Vehicle. Space docking is necessary to explore space beyond Earth's orbit(轨道). "The capability(能力;性能) increases China's ability to act independently in space, as well as its ability to work together with others," said Gregory Kulacki, a US space scientist and senior analyst(分析家).
"With the success of its first space docking, China is now equipped with the basic technology and ability required for the construction(建造) of a space station, "said Zhou Jianping, the chief designer of China's manned space programme. "The country is on its way to building a permanent(永久的) manned space station around 2020."