China is sending three new astronauts to the Tiangong space station

With “Shenzhou 23”, three new astronauts have launched to the Chinese space station “Tiangong”. For the first time, a crew member will stay in space for a whole year.

The crew is supposed to replace the current crew on the space station. Photo: Ng Han Guan/AP/dpa

Beijing. China has launched three new astronauts on their way to its Tiangong space station. The Shenzhou 23 spacecraft lifted off from the Jiuquan Space Center in northwest China on a Long March 2F launch vehicle, state news agency Xinhua reported.

Astronauts Zhu Yangzhu, Zhang Zhiyuan and Li Jiaying are on board. Li Jiaying is the first person from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region to take part in a Chinese space mission, according to the Chinese space agency CMSA.

The crew is supposed to replace the current crew of Zhang Lu, Wu Fei and Zhang Hongzhang on the space station. After launch, the spacecraft is expected to dock with the station within a few hours.

For the first time on the station for a whole year

For the first time, a Chinese astronaut is expected to stay in space on the station for around a year. Which member of the new crew will be selected will only be decided during the course of the mission in orbit. China wants to use the longer stay to investigate, among other things, how long-term missions affect the human body.

The mission is part of the regular crew change on the Chinese space station. According to the authorities, the crew that is now being replaced has already spent 203 days in space and is likely to set a record for the longest single mission for a Chinese astronaut crew.