China to launch Shenzhou XVI manned spacecraft on Tuesday

China to launch Shenzhou XVI manned spacecraft on Tuesday
by Staff Writers
Beijing, China (SPX) May 29, 2023

The Shenzhou XVI spacecraft, transporting three Chinese astronauts to the Tiangong space station, is slated to launch on Tuesday morning, the China Manned Space Agency has announced.

Marking the inaugural mission for China's third generation of astronauts, this event will also represent the first occasion a Chinese civilian ventures beyond Earth's atmosphere.

Speaking at a news conference on Monday at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China, Lin Xiqiang, deputy director of the China Manned Space Agency, outlined the crew roster. Mission commander Major General Jing Haipeng, Colonel Zhu Yangzhu, and Professor Gui Haichao are set to ascend aboard the Shenzhou XVI spacecraft, propelled by a Long March 2F carrier rocket, at 9:31 am Tuesday from the Jiuquan center, situated in the Gobi Desert.

Lin added that the process of filling the Long March 2F rocket with propellants would begin at the service tower on Monday morning.

Upon entering orbit, the Shenzhou XVI spacecraft will activate a rapid rendezvous-docking mode to interface with the radial port on the Tianhe core module, according to official accounts.

Jing's team will replace the current occupants of the Tiangong space station, namely Major General Fei Junlong, Senior Colonel Deng Qingming, and Senior Colonel Zhang Lu from the Shenzhou XV, who have been in orbit since November 30, effectively spending six months in space.

The Shenzhou XVI crew, slated to spend approximately five months on the Tiangong space station, is due to return to Earth in November. They will undertake a series of spacewalks during the mission to install equipment on the station and ensure its ongoing maintenance, Lin detailed.

Apart from spacewalks, their key responsibilities involve supporting the docking and departure of visiting spacecraft, including cargo ships and space-based telescopes, conducting scientific experiments and technological demonstrations, and delivering science lectures.

Crew members Jing and Zhu hail from the People's Liberation Army's Astronaut Division, while Gui serves as a doctoral supervisor at the Department of Spacecraft and Launch Vehicle Technology at Beihang University's School of Astronautics in Beijing. All three hold doctorates.

Jing, embarking on his fourth journey into space, is China's most seasoned astronaut.

Mission spaceflight engineer Zhu and science payloads specialist Gui will be the first of the country's third-generation astronauts to undertake a spaceflight.

To date, all Chinese astronauts involved in spaceflights have been members of the People's Liberation Army, representing the first two generations of astronauts, all selected from experienced Air Force aviators.

The third generation of astronauts includes civilians recruited from the ranks of researchers and engineers, consisting of 17 men and one woman divided into three roles: seven spacecraft pilots, seven spaceflight engineers, and four science payloads specialists.

Earlier this month, the Tianzhou 6 robotic cargo spaceship launched from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan province to deliver supplies for the upcoming manned missions, marking the first spacecraft to visit the Tiangong space station this year.

The Tiangong, currently orbiting about 400 kilometers above Earth, comprises three main components: the Tianhe core module and the Wentian and Mengtian science lab modules. It is currently accompanied by two visiting craft, the Shenzhou XV crew ship and the Tianzhou 6 cargo ship.

(Xinhua News report. GPT4 reprocessed.)