China’s brand-new heavy-lift carrier rocket Long March-5 blasts off from Wenchang Space Launch center in South China’s Hainan province, trailing a vast column of flame.[Photo/Xinhua]

China’s first-generation heavy-lift carrier rocket, the Long March 5, made its maiden flight at 8:43 pm Thursday, moving the country closer to its goal of building a manned space station.

The 57-meter-long spacecraft, China’s largest carrier rocket, blasted off into thick clouds from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in the island province of Hainan.

Its payload is comprised of the Shijian 17 scientific experiment satellite and the Yuanzheng 2, a restartable rocket upper stage that is able to send multiple spacecraft into different orbits during a single mission.

The launch was witnessed by an estimated 100,000 spectators who had flooded into Wenchang over the past few days to view the colossal rocket, the local government said.

As the nation’s largest and most technologically advanced launch vehicle, Long March 5 will be crucial in putting China’s planned manned space station into orbit, as well as sending unmanned probes to Mars, according to a statement released by the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense, which oversaw its development.