The Shenzhou 16 mission has ended. Three Taikonauts spent five months on China’s Tiangong National Orbital Station. They returned to Earth on Tuesday.
The Chinese manned spacecraft Shenzhou 16 with three taikonauts (Chinese astronauts – editor’s note) was undocked from China’s Tiangong National Orbital Station on Monday, the Human Space Program Office of the People’s Republic of China announced. The crew has already returned to Earth.
End of the Shenzhou 16 missionPAP/EPA/XINHUA / LIAN ZHEN
Five months of work
The three cosmonauts arrived at the orbital station in May this year and worked there for five months. The ship and its crew landed at the Dongfeng Proving Ground in the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region.
The now completed Shenzhou 16 mission was the fifth expedition by Chinese cosmonauts to Tiangong Station.
The mission crew will continue to work at the station Shenzhou 17, which also consists of three people. They arrived at the station on October 26 and will spend five months there.
End of the Shenzhou 16 missionPAP/EPA/XINHUA / LIAN ZHEN
Main photo source: PAP/EPA/XINHUA / LIAN ZHEN