Countdown to China's space station begins

China's unmanned space rocket "Tiangong-1" stands ready for blast off on the launch pad at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, Sept 20, 2011. The Long March II-F carrying Tiangong-1, or "Heavenly Palace 1", will take off from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Northwest China's Gansu province between Sept 27 and 30. It will serve as "a target spacecraft" for rendezvous and docking experiments with the hope its launch will pave the way for a planned space station. [Photo/Xinhua]

A Long March II-F carrier rocket loaded with "Tiangong-1", an unmanned space module, is moved to the launch pad at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, Sept 20, 2011. [Photo/Xinhua]