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 model has her hair done backstage before a fashion show by Greek designer Mary Katrantzou during the Mercedes-Benz China Fashion Week in Beijing, China, 27 March 2016. The fashion week runs until 31 March. (Photo by How Hwee Young/EPA)

Relatives of a missing person scuffle with police officers on the bank of the Yangtze River, near Jingjiang, Jiangsu province January 17, 2015. A search and rescue operation was still underway after the boat capsized on January 15, leaving 22 people missing, including foreigners. (Photo by Aly Song/Reuters)

Miss India Manushi Chhilar (C) reacts as she wins the 67 th Miss World contest final next to France Aurore Andrée Raphaëlle Kichenin (R) and Miss Kenya Magline Jeruto (L) in Sanya, on the tropical Chinese island of Hainan on November 18, 2017. (Photo by Nicolas Asfouri/AFP Photo)

A police officer wearing a protective mask walks past the portrait of late communist leader Mao Zedong (not pictured) at Tiananmen Gate in Beijing on January 23, 2020. Large-scale Lunar New Year events in Beijing have been cancelled as part of national efforts to control the spread of a new SARS-like virus, city authorities announced on January 23. (Photo by Nicolas Asfouri/AFP Photo)

Organizers of an exhibition of ancient instruments of torture in Huai'an, Jiangsu province, have suggested that children, heart disease patients and people with high blood pressure stay away because of the vivid depictions of shocking cruelty. The exhibition has more than 200 instruments of torture on display in the 50,000-square-meter exhibition halls of a restored ancient building. Wax figures, along with sound and light techniques, are incorporated for scary effect. The local government said the exhibition is for tourists and historians to research ancient torture practices. (Photo by ChinaFotoPress)

A worker works on a “Transformers” replica on the outskirts of Shanghai, June 18, 2014. Li Lei, owner of a small factory, uses his spare time and money to build “Transformers” replicas for rent or sale. The new Transformers movie, which is premiering later this month, has brought the factory many new orders, according to Li. (Photo by Aly Song/Reuters)

Dancers perform a routine at the Renault display at the Beijing International Automotive Exhibition in Beijing, Tuesday, April 26, 2016. (Photo by Mark Schiefelbein/AP Photo)