China has sent its first woman into space on a mission to dock with an orbiting station, the latest step in an ambitious programme to go to the moon and on to Mars.

Photo: China's first female astronaut Liu Yang, waves during a sending off ceremony before she departs for the Shenzhou 9 spacecraft rocket launch pad at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Jiuquan, China, Saturday, June 16, 2012. China will send its first woman and two other astronauts into space Saturday to work on a temporary space station for about a week, in a key step toward becoming only the third nation to set up a permanent base in orbit. (Photo by Ng Han Guan/AP Photo)

A woman poses for photos in snowfall on a podium installed on International Women's Day in central St. Petersburg, Russia, Wednesday, March 8, 2023, with a police officer in the background. International Women's Day on March 8 is an official holiday in Russia, where men give flowers and gifts to female relatives, friends and colleagues. (Photo by Dmitri Lovetsky/AP Photo)

This photo taken on December 10, 2023 shows female members of the Mandalay People's Defense Forces (MDY-PDF) heading to the frontline amid clashes with the Myanmar military in northern Shan State. In the hills of northern Myanmar young women fly combat drones, treat wounded comrades and patrol the frontlines, new roles in the battle to overthrow the military junta. (Photo by AFP Photo/Stringer)

Visitors take photos of Fu Bao, a giant panda, at Everland amusement park in Yongin, south of Seoul, South Korea, 25 February 2024. The panda will be displayed to the public until 03 March, before returning to China in early April. The female panda, which was born to giant panda Ai Bao and her partner, Le Bao, at the Everland amusement park in Yongin, south of Seoul, in 2020, will be returned to China under an international agreement. (Photo by Yonhap/EPA)

A competitor poses on the catwalk during the Miss Bumbum Brazil 2016 pageant in Sao Paulo, Brazil on November 9, 2016. Fifteen candidates compete in the annual pageant to select Brazil's sexiest female rear end. (Photo by Miguel Schincariol/AFP Photo)

Karishma, a 13 year old female Asian elephant, paints at an easel in her enclosure at ZSL Whipsnade Zoo on September 20, 2011 in Dunstable, England. A selection of Karishma's artwork will go on display at the Zoo this weekend to celebrate Elephant Appreciation Day. (Photo by Oli Scarff/Getty Images)

It’s a tradition that dates back hundreds of years, where two stallions fight over a female to ring the Chinese new year. And when it’s the Year of the Horse, the fights are considered to be even more significant. They’re held in small villages across southern China and have been condemned by animal rights groups, including Hong-Kong based Animals Asia. But those who participate in the events defend the fights and insist they take care of the animals.

Ukrainian platoon commander Mariia talks on the phone in a position in the Donetsk region, Ukraine, Saturday, July 2, 2022. Ukrainian soldiers returning from the frontlines in eastern Ukraine’s Donbas region describe life during what has turned into a grueling war of attrition as apocalyptic. Mariia, 41, said that front-line conditions may vary depending on where a unit is positioned and how well supplied they are. (Photo by Efrem Lukatsky/AP Photo)