On the morning of December 27, during the mission to build China’s first space station, the astronauts of the Shenzhou 13 spacecraft completed their second spacewalk, lasting approximately 6 hours.
Astronauts from Shenzhou 13 return to the module after the second spacewalk. (Photo: Xinhua).
According to information from the China Manned Space Agency, the commander of the Shenzhou 13 mission, Zhai Zhigang, and the youngest crew member, Ye Guangfu, safely returned to the Tianhe core module of the space station at 00:55 AM on December 27 (Beijing time), concluding their second spacewalk which lasted approximately 6 hours.
The crew accomplished the objectives set for this mission, such as enhancing the panoramic camera and installing external foot restraints. This marks China’s fourth spacewalk from the core module of the space station this year, occurring after the Shenzhou 13 crew has been working and living there for 72 days, and less than two months after their first spacewalk on November 7.
In the first spacewalk, the only female member of the crew, Wang Yaping, became the first female astronaut from China to conduct a spacewalk.
According to assessments by analysts in the country’s aerospace industry, having crew members take turns conducting spacewalks will help train more astronauts equipped with valuable skills and experience in this field.
In the future, spacewalks will become a regular task in China’s space station construction missions. Therefore, these astronauts will undertake this task more frequently and with increasing complexity, to effectively support the smooth completion and stable operation of the space station. The Shenzhou 13 crew is expected to remain in orbit for 6 months, a record duration for a Chinese mission. As previously planned, they will perform 2 to 3 spacewalks.
