China launches Shenzhou-14 spacecraft for completing space station construction

China launched the spaceship Shenzhou-14 carrying three astronauts to its new Tiangong space station on Sunday, where they will work and dwell for six months as building progresses.

According to Global Times, a Long March-2F Y14 carrier rocket carrying the Shenzhou-14 spacecraft launched at 10:44 a.m. from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in Northwest China’s Gansu Province. The three Shenzhou 14 crew members – commander Chen Dong, Liu Yang, and Cai Xuzhe – were officially revealed as the crew on Saturday.

Shenzhou-14 is making history by being the first crewed spaceflight trip to Tianhe at the China Space Station’s in-orbit construction stage, and the first mission without an older age line.

According to Global Times, the Wentian and Mengtian space station lab modules, the Tianzhou-5 cargo spacecraft, and the Shenzhou-15 manned spacecraft will be launched during the Shenzhou-14 crew’s six-month stay in orbit.

Chen Dong, a veteran of the Shenzhou 11 mission in 2016, has begun his second mission as commander. Another crew member, Liu Yang, became China’s first woman in space after flying in the Shenzhou-9 mission in 2012, while Cai Xuzhe will be making his first flight during the forthcoming trip.

“For this day, I have prepared 12 years. I feel honored and proud to have this chance to go into space for my country,” Xuzhe said as quoted by Global Times.

Concerning the younger crew members, a Beijing-based senior space specialist stated that the new Shenzhou taikonaut trio must have performed admirably during training, and the younger crew members must have learned new information and abilities for the voyage.

The trio is expected to perform verification of large and small robotic arms, spacewalks, and payload installation outside the cabin, according to the Shenzhou spacecraft developer with the state-owned aerospace contractor China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp. (CASC.)

The installation of a tiny robotic arm on the Wentian module is another feature of the Shenzhou-14 expedition. According to Global Times, the previous expedition, the Shenzhou-13 mission, safely returned to Earth on April 16 after completing the technical verification stage of China’s space station.