To the “Tiangong” space station: China is sending more taikonauts into space

Shift change on the Chinese space station “Tiangong”: Three taikonauts took off from the Gobi desert to replace the current crew. The newcomers are expected to complete construction of the space station later this year.

China has sent another team of taikonauts to its new Tiangong space station. The trio started on board the spaceship “Shenzhou 15” from the Jiuquan Cosmodrome in the Gobi desert in the north-west of the People’s Republic. A “Long March 2F” rocket took them into space, as Chinese state television showed in a live broadcast.

The ship reached orbit around nine minutes after launch. Minutes later, the solar panels were unfolded. If everything goes according to plan, the “Shenzhou 15” will later dock with the space station in an automated maneuver.

First crew change

The crew is led by 57-year-old space veteran Fei Junlong. For his colleagues Deng Qinming and Zhang Lu, “Shenzhou-15” is their first space mission. Three colleagues – Chen Dong, Liu Yang and Cai Xuzhe – who arrived there in early June, are already waiting for them on board the Chinese space station.

It is the first crew change of the space station that will be performed in space. Fei and his colleagues are scheduled to install equipment outside and inside the space station during their roughly six-month stay, according to the space agency. A cargo spaceship is also scheduled to arrive there during their mission.

According to the plan, the trio will be replaced next year by the manned Shenzhou-16 mission. Fei, Deng, and Zhang are scheduled to return to Earth in May.

The space station should be ready by the end of the year

The Tiangong space station, whose name means “heavenly palace,” is an important part of China’s ambitious space strategy. Earlier this month, the final module for the space station docked successfully.

Its construction should be completed by the end of the year. It should then have a mass of about 90 tons. That’s about a quarter the mass of the International Space Station, which China has been banned from using at the instigation of the United States. “Tiangong” is scheduled to remain in operation for about a decade. China wants to use the space station for numerous experiments.

research station on the moon

For its ambitious goals, China has invested billions in the space program. Achievements include a reconnaissance vehicle on Mars and several missions to the moon. Rock samples from the polar regions of the moon are to be brought to earth over the next five years.

China is also working with Russia on plans for a joint research station on the moon. A reusable spacecraft could be deployed as early as 2025.