Full coverage: China Tiangong-2 Space Lab Launch

This year marks 60 years of China's space industry. What have they archived?

China's space industry has made great strides in six decades of development.

The beginnings of space program go back to February 1956. Noted physicist Qian Xuesen, put forward the idea of building a national aerospace science and technology industry. Two months later, the national space institute was founded.

In 1970, China's launched its first satellite, the Dongfanghong-I, named for the song, "The East is Red." It orbited for 28 hours and played the song. China was the fifth country to independently launch a satellite.

In October 2003, the Shenzhou-V carried Yang Liwei on the country's first manned mission. With Yang's flight, China became the third country to send humans into space.

Five years later, the Shenzhou-VII took Zhai Zhigang into orbit for China's first space walk.

In June 2012, three astronauts aboard the Shenzhou-9 docked with the Tiangong-1 space lab. One of them was China's first female astronaut Liu Yang.

In December 2013, the Chang’e-3, unmanned lunar probe, made a soft landing on the Moon. The mission included a robotic lander and the Yutu lunar rover.

Last month, the Tiangong-2 space lab was launched. The Shenzhou-11's mission is to dock with it.

60 years is a long time for humans, but just a blink of an eye in the cosmos. The dedication of scientists and many others is making it possible for humanity to reach for the stars.