By Reuters
Published on
BEIJING (Reuters) - China on Thursday launched a key module of its planned permanent orbiting space station, state media reported, the first in a series of steps needed to complete the station around 2022.
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The module, named "Tianhe", or "Harmony of the Heavens", was launched on the Long March 5B, China's largest carrier rocket, at 11:23 a.m. (0323 GMT) from the Wenchang Space Launch Centre on the southern island of Hainan.
Tianhe is one of three main components of what would be China's first self-developed space station, rivalling the only other station in service - the International Space Station (ISS).
(Reporting by Ryan Woo and Liangping Gao; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)