The Shenzhou 15 crew, consisting of three astronauts, landed safely at the Dongfeng Landing Site in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region at 5:34 AM on June 4 (Hanoi time).
The Shenzhou 15 crew returns to Earth. Video: Xinhua
The mission commander of Shenzhou 15, Fei Junlong, along with his teammates Deng Qingming and Zhang Lu, has been aboard the Tiangong space station since November of last year. “We feel very good,” Fei stated immediately after exiting the Shenzhou 15 spacecraft.
Ground support teams completed rescue and recovery drills at Dongfeng on June 1 in preparation for the crew’s return. Once the spacecraft landed, they reached the site within minutes to adjust the spacecraft cabin and begin extricating the astronauts. All three exited the spacecraft safely in less than an hour.
3 Chinese astronauts return safely to Earth.
During their six-month stay aboard the Tiangong space station, the Shenzhou 15 crew conducted four spacewalks, setting a new national record. They also carried out a series of experiments and scientific activities, including the installation of an external pump system and connecting cables across the cabin.
The Shenzhou 15 crew welcomed the Shenzhou 16 crew to the Tiangong space station on May 30. On June 2, Fei and his two teammates handed over control of the space station to the three new astronauts. “We have completed our mission in orbit with Shenzhou 15. Now I pass the keys to the space station as arranged,” Fei remarked during the handover.
“On behalf of the Shenzhou 16 crew, after thorough checks and reviews, I confirm that there are no issues and will sign,” said Jing Haipeng, commander of Shenzhou 16.
In addition to Jing, the Shenzhou 16 crew includes Gui Haichao, China’s first civilian astronaut to fly into space, and engineer Zhu Yangzhu. This trio is expected to work aboard the Tiangong space station for approximately five months.
