Jiuquan, China (AFP) April 25, 2024
![](https://www.spxdaily.com/images-bg/china-shenzhou-xvi-16-docks-tiangong-space-station-bg.jpg)
A spaceship carrying three astronauts from China's Shenzhou-18 mission safely docked at Tiangong space station Friday, state-run media reported, the latest step in Beijing's space programme that aims to send astronauts to the Moon by 2030.
The crew took off in a capsule atop a Long March-2F rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in China's northwest at 8:59 pm local time !1259 GMT)