学进去

Shortly after the Shenzhou XIII crew (全体组员) returned to Earth in April, the door of Tiangong space station opened again! On June 5, it welcomed another three Chinese astronauts—Chen Dong, Liu Yang and Cai Xuzhe.

This is China’s Shenzhou XIV mission, the ninth manned spaceflight (载人航天飞行) for China, according to China Daily. The astronauts will stay 400 kilometers above the Earth for six months. During the Shenzhou XIII mission on Tiangong, astronauts tested many key technologies. This was to help the proper “construction team (施工队)”, the Shenzhou XIV crew, to complete the bulking of Tiangong.

The crew have a busy schedule (时间表). They will work with ground controllers to connect the Wentian and Mengtian space labs (实验室) with the Tianhe core module (核心舱). Wentian will be launched (发射) in July and Mengtian in October. Astronauts will use a robotic arm to move the labs to their final position. “There will likely be technical uncertainties that the astronauts may have to deal with,” said Pang Zhihao, who worked at the China Academy of Space Technology. Once completed, the station will form a T-shaped structure.

The crew will also enter the two space labs for the first time. They will install equipment (安装仪器) and do scientific experiments. They will also do two to three spacewalks. We can also look forward to fun lectures given by the astronauts!

When their mission is completed around the end of this year, the Tiangong space station will become fully operational. The crew will meet another three astronauts from the Shenzhou XV mission. The six astronauts will work together for five to 10 days inside Tiangong, before the Shenzhou XIV crew fly back to Earth in December.

The Tiangong space station is expected to operate (工作) for up to 15 years, officials said, noting that it will also be open to foreign astronauts.