Congratulations! A complete success!
According to the China Manned Space Engineering Office, at 9:31 a.m. Beijing time on May 30, 2023, the Long March-2F Y16 carrier rocket carrying the Shenzhou-16 manned spacecraft was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. About 10 minutes later, the Shenzhou-16 spacecraft and the rocket successfully separated and entered the predetermined orbit. The astronauts were in good condition, and the launch was a complete success.
The spaceship, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China.
The Shenzhou XVI astronauts will conduct large-scale in-orbit tests and experiments in various fields as planned. They are expected to make high-level scientific achievements in the study of novel quantum phenomena, high-precision space time-frequency systems, the verification of general relativity, and the origin of life.
The crew, consisting of Jing Haipeng, Zhu Yangzhu and Gui Haichao, will witness the dockings of the Tianzhou-5 cargo craft and the Shenzhou XVII manned spaceship, as well as the departures of the Shenzhou XV manned spaceship and Tianzhou-5.
This mission is the first manned flight of China's manned space program in the stage of space station application and development. It is the 29th launch mission since the project was established and also the 475th flight of the Long March series carrier rockets.
Currently, the space station module has entered the rendezvous and docking orbit and is in good working condition, meeting the conditions for rendezvous and docking with the Shenzhou-16 manned spacecraft and the astronauts' residence.
Let's cheer for the astronauts together! Let's cheer for China's aerospace!