In this photo distributed by the official Chinese news agency, Xinhua, the Shenzhou 7 manned space craft launches from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China's Gansu province on Thursday Sept. 25, 2008. (AP Photo/Xinhua, Li Gang)

China's Shenzhou-9 capsule, with its crew of three, remains on course to dock with the Tiangong-1 space lab. National media reports said the coupling of the two vehicles will occur today.

The latest Shenzhou mission was launched on Saturday, taking China's first female astronaut into orbit.

Thirty-three-year old Liu Yang flies with Commander Jing Haipeng, 46, and fellow flight engineer, Liu Wang, 42.

It is China's fourth manned mission and another opportunity to see how far the Asian nation has developed its space technology.