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As of Tuesday, May 30, three civillian astronauts are on their way to China's Tiangong space station. The crew left for the space station on the Shenzhou-16 (Divine Vessel) spacecraft that was launched aboard a Long March-2F rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China's Gobi Desert at 01:31 GMT.
About 19 minutes after lift-off, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced the crew's successful launch.
After a seven-hour journey, the spacecraft will dock with the Tianhe core module of the station, which is located 248 miles (400 kilometers) above the ground.
The China National Space Administration sent the three astronauts to the orbital space outpost as part of crew rotation.
- China will launch its first civilian astronaut to space tomorrow
- China will expand its Tiangong space station with a new orbital module
- Chinese astronauts successfully grew rice aboard the Tiangong space station
In-orbit experiments based on novel quantum phenomena
The new crew will replace the astronauts (Shenzhou-15 crew) who have been stationed since November 2022. The Shenzhou-16 crew will most likely remain in space for the next five months.
Jing Haipeng, the commander, is going to space for the fourth time, a record for the country's astronauts. First civilian Gui Haichao, a professor at Beihang University in Beijing with expertise in payload applications, and Zhu Yangzhu, a space flight engineer, form the rest of the crew. Haichao and Yangzhu will be visiting space for the first time.
According to a report in South China Morning Post, the crew will conduct a variety of in-orbit experiments. Some are based on "novel quantum phenomena, high-precision space time-frequency systems, general relativity verification, and the origin of life."
Following the successful launch, wishes began to pour in. John Lee Ka-Chiu, Hong Kong Chief Executive, said: "The Shenzhou 16 manned space mission is the second mission for the country’s manned space programme this year, it is also the space station’s first manned mission in its application and development stage." Lee further added, “The country’s manned space exploration efforts are having continued progress and success, this is making me feel very proud and honored.”
Space station is now fully operational
Several manned missions resulted in the completion of Tiangong's three modules in late 2022. The space agency intends to keep the space outpost occupied for at least a decade. According to reports, the Chinese space station is 20 percent larger than the International Space Station.
Meanwhile, China is also working on plans to expand the current outpost with a new module that will most likely be attached to the existing T-shaped space station.
In addition, China has several other space exploration plans in the works. Among them is the construction of a large space telescope. The space agency is aiming to put into orbit a space telescope called Xuntian, which translates as "Surveying the Heavens." The field of view of this space telescope will be 350 times wider than that of the Hubble Space Telescope.
