China Launches Shenzhou-19 with Three New Crew Members to Join its Tiangong Space Station.
Science and Technology
On 30th October 2024, China successfully launched its Shenzhou-19 spaceship with three astronauts on board, including two men and one woman, for a six-month mission to its Tiangong Space Station (TSS) in low Earth orbit.
- The spacecraft was launched aboard a Long March-2F carrier rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China.
- This mission marks the 33rd flight of China’s manned space program and the 4th crewed mission during the application and development phase of the TSS.
- China launched its first crewed mission in 2003, becoming the third country to do so after Russia (formerly the Soviet Union) and the United States.
Main Points:- (i) The new crew includes Mission Commander Cai Xuzhe, who previously flew to space on the Shenzhou-14 mission in 2022.
(ii) The spaceship is tasked with performing a fast, automated rendezvous and docking with the front port of the TSS core module "Tianhe" in about 6.5 hours, forming a combination of three modules and three spacecraft.
(iii) The crew will conduct 86 space research and technology experiments across a variety of fields, including space life science, microgravity fundamental physics, and space material science.
About China National Space Administration(CNSA)
Administrator : Zhang Kejian
Secretary General : XU Hongliang
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