China set to send 3 astronauts on longest crewed mission yet

[Still Waters]

China is preparing to send three astronauts to live on its space station for six months—a new milestone for a program that has advanced rapidly in recent years.

It will be China's longest crewed space mission and set a record for the most time spent in space by Chinese astronauts. The Shenzhou-13 spaceship is expected to be launched into space on a Long March-2F rocket early Saturday morning from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on the edge of the Gobi Desert in northwestern China.

The first crew who served a 90-day mission aboard the main Tianhe core module of the space station returned in mid-September.

The new crew has two veterans of space travel. Pilot Zhai Zhigang, 55, performed China's first spacewalk. Wang Yaping, 41, and the only woman on the mission, carried out experiments and led a science class in real-time while traveling on one of China's earlier experimental space stations. Ye Guangfu, 41, will be traveling into space for the first time.

https://phys.org/news/2021-10-china-astronauts-longest-crewed-mission.html

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[Still Waters]

Chinese astronauts arrive at space station for longest mission

Three astronauts successfully docked with China’s new space station, state media said, on what is set to be Beijing’s longest crewed mission to date and the latest landmark in its drive to become a major space power.

The three blasted off shortly after midnight on Saturday (1600 GMT) from the Jiuquan launch centre in northwestern China’s Gobi desert, state-run news agency Xinhua said, with the team expected to spend six months at the Tiangong space station.

After the launch, the China Manned Space Agency declared it a success and said the crew members “were in good shape”, according to Xinhua.

https://www.theguardian.com/science/2021/oct/16/chinese-astronauts-arrive-at-space-station-for-longest-mission

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Astronaut conducts first spacewalk by Chinese woman

Wang Yaping has become the first Chinese woman to conduct a spacewalk as part of a six-month mission to the country's space station.

Fellow astronaut Zhai Zhigang left the station's main module on Sunday evening and Wang followed later. They installed equipment and carried out tests alongside the station's robotic service arm, according to the China Manned Space Agency. The spacewalk lasted until early Monday.

The third member of the crew, Ye Guangfu, assisted from inside the station, CMS said on its website.

https://phys.org/news/2021-11-china-1st-woman-spacewalk-hours.html

[Still Waters]

China plans space station completion, many launches in 2022

China has recommitted itself to completing its orbiting space station by the end of the year and says it is planning more than 40 launches for 2022, putting it roughly level with the United States.

Launches would include those of two Shenzhou crewed missions, two Tianzhou cargo spacecraft and the station's additional two modules, the official Xinhua News Agency reported Thursday, citing a recent announcement by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation known as CASC.

Named Mengtian and Wentian, the science modules will join the Tianhe core module that is currently home to a three-person crew.

https://phys.org/news/2022-01-china-space-station.html

[Still Waters]

Three Chinese astronauts return to Earth after six months in space

Three Chinese astronauts returned to Earth on Saturday after 183 days in space, ending China's longest crewed mission as it continues its quest to become a major space power.

The Shenzhou-13 spacecraft was the latest mission in Beijing's drive to rival the United States, after landing a rover on Mars and sending probes to the Moon.

Live footage from state broadcaster CCTV showed the capsule landing in a cloud of dust, with ground crew who had kept clear of the landing site rushing in helicopters to reach the capsule.

The two men and one woman—Zhai Zhigang, Ye Guangfu and Wang Yaping—returned to Earth shortly before 10 am Beijing time (0200 GMT), after six months aboard the Tianhe core module of China's Tiangong space station.

Ground crew applauded as the astronauts each took turns to report that they were in good physical condition.

https://phys.org/news/2022-04-chinese-astronauts-earth-months-space.html