China's space programme has taken another big step forward with the acquisition of its first tracking station in Australia.
Space authorities used the station in Western Australia during Tuesday's launch of Shenzhou VIII on a historic mission to dock with a target vehicle in orbit, paving the way for China's manned space station.
Tracking stations in Australia have long been a mainstay of Western space programmes, and the opening of the Chinese station in a country considered one of the closest allies of the United States also has geopolitical implications.
It is the space programme's ninth ground station and the fifth outside China. A fleet of ships also tracks spacecraft from the world's oceans.
The station at Dongara, a farm in Mingenew, Western Australia, was built by the Swedish Space Corporation and leased to Beijing, although it is believed that key components were shipped from China.
Xue Jingdong, the company's chief representative in China, said Chinese space authorities were renting the site, including buildings and equipment, from the SSC. Local Australian authorities have inspected the site and approved it.
The Swedish company, which has also worked with Nasa and the European Space Agency, was reluctant to provide details on the station, given the political sensitivity of the issue.