BEIJING (AP) - China launched its most ambitious Mars mission yet on Thursday in a bold attempt to join the United States in successfully landing a spacecraft on the red planet.Engines blazing orange, a Long March-5 carrier rocket took off under clear skies around 12:40 p.m.
from Hainan Island, south of China's mainland. Hundreds of space enthusiasts cried out excitedly on a beach across the bay from the launch site.“This is a kind of hope, a kind of strength,” said Li Dapeng, co-founder of the China branch of the Mars Society, an international enthusiast group.
He wore a Mars Society T-shirt, and was there with his wife, 11-year-old son and 2,000 others on the beach to watch the launch.Launch commander Zhang Xueyu announced to cheers in.