Context: Recently, China has successfully launched the Long March 5B’ rocket and prototype spacecraft. It is being considered as China’s successful step to operate a permanent space station and send astronauts to the Moon.

About ‘The Long March 5B’ 

• The launch of ‘The Long March 5B’ rocket is a major test of the country’s ambitions to operate a permanent space station and send astronauts to the Moon.
• Following the launch of the rocket, an unmanned prototype spaceship successfully separated and entered its planned orbit.
• It is expected that the spaceship will be instrumental in transporting astronauts to a space station that China plans to complete by 2022 — and eventually to the Moon.
• It would have capacity for a crew of six.
• China plans to send an astronaut to the Moon in about a decade and then build a base there.
• The new Long March 5B rocket has been specially designated to propel modules of the future space station into orbit.
• This is a step forward in its deep-space ambitions of building an orbiting space station, furthering its aspirations to rival the U.S., Russia and private companies in outer space exploration.
• It inaugurates the "third step" of China's manned space program.
• The Long March-5B, with a length of about 53.7 metres and takeoff mass of about 849 tonnes, was also carrying an inflatable cargo return module.
• A space station is a spacecraft capable of supporting crew members, designed to remain in space for an extended period of time and for other spacecraft to dock.
• One fully functional space station in the Earth's lower orbit is the International Space Station and astronauts conduct different experiments in it.
• The United States is so far the only country to have successfully sent humans to the Moon.
• But China has made huge strides in its effort to catch up, sending astronauts into space, satellites into orbit and a rover to the far side of the Moon.
• The U.S., however, has banned most space cooperation with China out of national security concerns, keeping China from participating in the International Space Station and prompting it to gradually develop its own equipment.