China racing US with plans to launch 140 spacecraft and finish new space station

CHINA looks set to leave the US in the dust this year by blasting even more spacecraft into the skies.

The secretive nation has revealed ambitious plans to carry out over 50 launches, sending more than 140 bits of space kit up throughout 2022.

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Completion of China’s own space station called Tiangong is top priority – and comes in the wake of Nasa announcing the ISS will be crashed down to Earth by 2031.

The space station will be shaped like a T once finished, and will be home to a cabin room fit for three astronauts to stay in long-term or shorter stays for six, Chinese press reports.

China’s military-run space programme is banned from the accessing the ISS due to US objections.

So instead the country has largely gone it alone.

Among the busy schedule will be six manned missions too.

The plans go beyond those announced in January, when the country said it would do at least 40 space launches, giving the US a serious run for its money.

And China hasn’t waited around either – the nation has already done two launches this year.

One was for a satellite that allows the China National Space Administration to carry out “space environment detection and related technology experiments”.

Between 2016 and 2021 it has successfully blasted 207 launches in total.

The country has traditionally taken a cautious approach with its space programme but its busy roster suggests China now wants to take a leading role in the skies above.

Experts have been dashing to complete new rockets to keep up with the busy schedule, even working over the recent Lunar New Year holiday.

The country is also reportedly working on a top secret space plane.

Their current six-month mission is its longest since China first put a human in space back in 2003, becoming the third to make it possible after Russia and the US.

The crew has carried out spacewalks, with the first Chinese female astronaut taking part.

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In other news, Apple has revealed a bunch of new emoji for iPhone, including a pregnant man and two saucy symbols.

Experts have warned that future space launches could be jeopardised if “stupid” regimes like Russia don’t stop blasting the skies creating debris.

And the most popular phone since the millennium has been unveiled, with many shocked to find out it’s not an iPhone.

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