The spacecraft launched from China’s Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center under clear skies at 9:10 p.m. Beijing time, or 9:10 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time, according to the state-run Xinhua news agency.

The three 42-year-old fighter-pilot astronauts -- Zhai Zhigang, Jing Haipeng, and Liu Boming -- were orbiting about 213 miles above Earth late Thursday, Xinhua reported.

One astronaut -- or “taikonaut,” in Chinese -- is expected to walk in space for 30 minutes on Saturday. He plans to take samples from space and launch a small satellite monitoring station. The two others will stay in the depressurized cabin for support.

The crew is carrying traditional Chinese medicine in case of illness, and their diet includes shredded pork sautéed with garlic and grilled beef with spicy sauce.

China sent its first man into space in 2003, the third nation to do so, after the United States and Russia.

China’s space program, run by its military, launched a lunar probe a year ago. It was the first step in a program that includes establishing a space station and eventually putting a taikonaut on the moon.

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