Exploring the universe: The journey of Tiangong I

China's first space lab, Tiangong I, re-entered the Earth's atmosphere at 8:15 am and later fell into the central part of the South Pacific Ocean, according to the China Manned Space Agency.

During the re-entry process, most of the spacecraft's body burnt out, it said in a statement.

Tiangong I was launched on Sept 29, 2011 and ended service in March 2016 after completing its mission.

It has docked with Shenzhou VIII, Shenzhou IX, and Shenzhou X spacecraft and undertaken a series of tasks, making important contributions to China's manned space cause.