China launches 3-member crew to its space station as it seeks to put astronauts on the moon by 2030

China launched a three-member crew to its orbiting space station as part of its ambitious program that aims to put astronauts on the moon by 2030. The Shenzhou-18 spacecraft lifted off Thursday from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on the edge of the Gobi Desert in northwestern China atop a Long March 2-F rocket. The spacecraft’s three-member crew will relieve the Shenzhou-17 team which has been manning China’s Tiangong space station since last October.