( CNN ) -- China will launch its historic space docking mission Saturday along with its first female astronaut in space . Liu Yang has been selected to join two male astronauts , Jing Haipeng and Liu Wang , as part of a three-person crew aboard the Shenzhou-9 , according to China 's manned space docking program , which says the mission will last 10 days . A launch time is set for 6:37 p.m. local time ( 6:37 a.m . ET ) at a satellite center in northwestern Gansu province . The carrier rocket , the Long March-2F , was scheduled to start fueling Friday afternoon , and the launch ground and control systems are ready , state media reported . Echoing a famous Chinese proverb , Wu Ping , a spokeswoman for China 's manned space program said , `` Women hold up half the sky . Human space missions without women are incomplete . '' Chinese women push for a place in space . According to Xinhua , Liu , 33 , was the deputy head of a flight unit of the PLA 's Air Force and an air force major . She is also a veteran pilot with 1,680 hours of flying experience and , after two years of training , excelled in testing before being selected with another female , Wang Yaping , as a candidate for the crew . On the eve of the mission , however , it was Liu who won the coveted spot . Wu said that the participation of women in space will aid training , improve flight crew equipment and expand knowledge on the physical and psychological effects of space on women . `` It will also further expand the social impact of human space missions and showcase the positive image of Chinese women , '' Wu said . `` As a woman , I am eagerly looking forward to this flight with a female astronaut . '' In another milestone , Jing will be China 's first astronaut to travel twice into space , Xinhua reported . Like his other two crewmembers , Jing is a former pilot of the People 's Liberation Army and a member of the Communist Party of China , according to Xinhua . If all goes well , the Shenzhou-9 will dock with China 's orbiting space laboratory , making the nation the third after the United States and Russia to complete a manned space docking . As a precaution in case of an emergency , one of the crewmembers will not board the lab , the space program said in February . China has big aspirations for its program and hopes to build a space station and conduct a manned mission to the moon . Read about China 's space plans . The orbiting Tiangong-1 space lab module was launched into space in September , and two months later it successfully completed China 's first space docking with an unmanned spacecraft , Shenzhou-8 , according to Xinhua news agency . The efforts demonstrate `` China 's continued commitment to becoming a first-class space power with an independent space capability , '' Taylor Fravel , associate professor at Massachusetts Institute of Technology , said this year . `` This is a very exclusive club . '' China 's efforts come as the United States refocuses its space program toward deep space exploration , and private companies such as SpaceX make strides toward the commercialization of spaceflight . Last month , SpaceX 's unmanned Dragon capsule completed the first commercial mission to the International Space Station . CNN 's Steven Jiang and Jaime FlorCruz contributed to this report .
NEW : Wu Ping wins coveted spot to be China 's third woman in space . Launch time is set for Friday afternoon local time in northwest China 's province . China aims to be first nation to perform a space docking . China aspires to build a space station and conduct manned mission to the moon .