In the 300 liftoffs, 197 were carried out by models developed by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology in Beijing, and 103 by the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology.

By now, Long March rockets have ferried 506 Chinese and foreign spacecraft into space, including six manned spaceships, two space laboratories, and four lunar probes.

Li Hong, deputy general manager at China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp, said the advances made by the Long March series represent the nation’s rising status and growing prowess in the global space arena.

“It took 37 years for the Long March family to perform 100 launches. The next 100 launches used seven years,” he said. “By comparison, the third 100 launches were made in the past four years.