#longmarch2f

Liftoff of Shenzhou-11, carrying Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong to the Tiangong-2 space station, October 16, 2016. Watch a replay of the launch here.

Tiangong-1, encapsulated atop its Long March 2F carrier rocket, is seen inside the Vertical Integration Building at the Jiuquan Satellite Launching Center. The booster was rolled to Launch Area-4 last week ahead of tonight’s launch. China’s second space station is set for launch at 11:04am EDT (10:04pm Beijing time) September 15, 2016.

Tiangong-2, China’s second space station, rolls to pad. China is just days away from launching their second-ever space laboratory, Tiangong-2, from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. The space station will host the Shenzhou 11 crew in mid-October, when the crew of two blasts off on a 30 day mission. Tiangong-1, which launched in 2011, hosted two Shenzhou crews for around a week each. Ground controllers officially deactivated the space station in March, giving teams enough time to prepare for Tiangong-2. China will test out their new autonomous resupply ship, Tianzhou -1, in early 2017. Tianzhou is the Chinese equivalent of the Russian Progress cargo vehicle. The space station arrived at the remote launch site July 9, with the components for the Long March 2F launch vehicle shortly after. Liftoff is scheduled for around 11:30pm EDT Wednesday September 14.

Liftoff of Shenzhou 10 manned spacecraft aboard Long March 2F launch vehicle to Tiangong 1 space station from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, 11 June 2013.

Long March 2F launches Shenzhou 9 to Tiangong 1 from Jiuquan Satellite Center, China. Aboard the spacecraft is China's first female astronaut, Liu Yang.

China's Tiangong-1 Space Station rendezvous and docking module launches on a Long March 2F rocket from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center LA4, September 2011.