The nation plans to launch its Shenzhou X spacecraft in early June, one of the senior officials in charge of the manned space programme said yesterday, according to Xinhua. The launch will mark another step forward in Beijing's ambitions for a bigger presence in space that include the construction of a space station by 2020. The crew could comprise a woman and two men, and they would be scheduled to enter the Tiangong 1 space lab module, according to Niu Hongguang, deputy commander-in-chief of China's manned space programme. Reuters
A young Tibetan died after setting himself on fire in Gansu province yesterday, local authorities said - the seventh to do so in a week in protest at Chinese rule over Tibet. The man set himself ablaze in front of a monastery in Hezuo, in the Tibetan autonomous prefecture of Gannan, the provincial government said. He was identified as 18-year-old Gonpo Tsering. Xinhua, AFP