China’s Shenzhou-13 spacecraft docks for 6-month mission

BEIJING (AP) — China has sent three astronauts to its space station for a record-setting six-month stay for the country. The spacecraft blasted off early Saturday and docked at the space station about six and a half hours later. The three astronauts are the second crew to move into the new space station, which was launched last April. The first crew spent three months at the orbiting outpost. China’s military-run space program plans to send multiple crews to the station over the next two years to make it fully functional. The new crew will do spacewalks to install equipment in preparation for expanding the station, assess living conditions and conduct experiments.