![China's first astronaut, Yang Liwei, 38, boards the Shenzhou 5 space vehicle at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, in the northwestern province of Gansu, Oct. 15, 2003.](https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/f5e578d/2147483647/strip/true/crop/140x209+0+0/resize/880x1314!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fmedia.npr.org%2Fprograms%2Fmorning%2Ffeatures%2F2003%2Foct%2Fchinaspace%2Freuters%2F031015.yang-c8b25f3320ce6dd0894041ec50466bfcbfef64ed.jpg)
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China launches its first manned space flight, becoming just the third nation to rocket a man into orbit. The Shenzhou 5 space vehicle blasted off Wednesday from northwest China carrying one astronaut. NPR's Rob Gifford reports.
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