The Chinese mainland's space-tracking ship Yuanwang VI will arrive in Hong Kong on April 29 for a six-day visit, the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (HKSAR) Government said Monday.

The visit to Hong Kong by Yuanwang VI will kick off a host of activities in the special administrative region to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, the HKSAR Government said.

Construction of Yuanwang VI was completed in 2008. It represents a new generation of space-tracking ships designed and manufactured in the Chinese mainland. On its maiden voyage last September, Yuanwang VI was engaged in maritime tracking of the Shenzhou VII manned space mission.

In all, China boasts a fleet of six Yuanwang space tracking ships which have carried out some 70 expeditions and traveled more than 1.5 million sea miles in the Pacific, Atlantic and Indian oceans.

The tracking ships constitute China's space telemetry network together with some 20 terrestrial surveying stations.

(Xinhua News Agency April 21, 2009)