[First manned spacecraft] China became the third country ever to launch a human into space in 2003. Yang Liwei, first Chinese astronaut in space, returned safely to Earth aboard Shenzhou 5 spacecraft on Octorber 16 after 21 hours in orbit. Two years later, a second flight in 2005 put two other astronauts Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng on a five-day journey in space.
