The Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge, China's First Bridge across the Yangtze River and the First Highway-railway Dual-use Bridge Built after the Founding of the People's Republic of China, Opens to Traffic on Oct 15, 1957

The Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge, the first to cross the Yangtze River, opens to traffic on Oct 15, 1957. [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]

The Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge, China's first bridge across the Yangtze River and the first highway-railway dual-use bridge built after the founding of the People's Republic of China, opens to traffic on Oct 15, 1957

China's first bridge across the Yangtze River, the Wuhan Yangtze River Bridge, opened to traffic on Oct 15, 1957.

Many units like China Railway Group Limited and China Railway Construction Corporation Limited helped to build it.

The total length of the bridge is 1,670 meters with a main span of 1,156 meters. The approach bridge to the northern bank is 303 meters long and runs 211 meters to the southern bank.

The bridge was also the first highway-railway dual-use bridge built after the founding of the People's Republic of China with a 14.5-meter wide lower layer for trains and a 20-meter wide four-lane upper deck for cars.

The bridge connects the northern and southern banks of the Yangtze River and has played a significant role in promoting the nation's economic growth.

China's first manned spacecraft Shenzhou V is launched successfully on Oct 15, 2003

Shenzhou V, China's first manned spacecraft, was sent into space by a Long March-2F carrier rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Northwest China's Gansu Province on Oct 15, 2003.

The first Chinese astronaut aboard was Yang Liwei.

Primarily developed by China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, the launch made China one of the few countries to have mastered the complete manned space technology and the third to have conducted manned space launches independently.

The Qinghai-Tibet Railway is completed on Oct 15, 2005

All sections of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, contracted by China Railway Group Limited and China Railway Construction Corporation Limited were completed on Oct 15, 2005.

Constructed in a high and cold area with weak ecology and ever-frozen ground, the railway is higher and longer than others of its kind in the world. Moreover, it has the longest distance through a permafrost region.

It was the first railway reaching the Tibet Autonomous Region and greatly promoted tourism, cultural and economic development in the region.

(Executive editor: Wang Ruoting)