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Events on Wednesday 15 October 2003 1
2003Shenzhou 5Yang Liwei becomes China's first astronautYang Liwei orbited the Earth 14 times aboard Shenzhou 5, making China the third country to launch a human into space using its own rocket and spacecraft. The 21-hour flight established China as a crewed spaceflight power and led to an expanding programme of missions and, later, a space station.