BEIJING (Reuters) – China is set to launch three astronauts into low-Earth orbit on Wednesday as part of the nation’s 14th manned space mission. During this mission, numerous scientific experiments are scheduled to be conducted.
Out of the 14 crewed missions undertaken so far, eight have involved visits to China’s independently constructed space station, Tiangong, which translates to "Celestial Palace" in Chinese.
The newest mission, designated Shenzhou-19, will be commanded by Cai Xuzhe, who previously participated in the Shenzhou-14 mission in June 2022. Joining him are Song Lingdong and Wang Haoze, who are younger astronauts born in the 1990s and will be embarking on their first space mission.
Wang Haoze, currently China’s sole female spaceflight engineer, will be the third Chinese woman to fly into space. She follows in the footsteps of Liu Yang and Wang Yaping, who each participated in two earlier Shenzhou missions.
China’s entry into space exploration began with the launch of its first uncrewed spacecraft, Shenzhou-1, in November 1999. This was followed by three additional unmanned missions before Yang Liwei became the first Chinese national to travel into space aboard Shenzhou-5.
Here is a summary of China’s past crewed space missions:
- Shenzhou-5: Launched in October 2003, crewed by Yang Liwei
- Shenzhou-6: Launched in October 2005, crewed by Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng
- Shenzhou-7: Launched in September 2008, crewed by Zhai Zhigang, Liu Boming, and Jing Haipeng
- Shenzhou-9: Launched in June 2012, crewed by Jing Haipeng, Liu Wang, and Liu Yang (female)
- Shenzhou-10: Launched in June 2013, crewed by Nie Haisheng, Zhang Xiaoguang, and Wang Yaping (female)
- Shenzhou-11: Launched in October 2016, crewed by Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong
- Shenzhou-12: Launched in June 2021, crewed by Nie Haisheng, Liu Boming, and Tang Hongbo
- Shenzhou-13: Launched in October 2021, crewed by Zhai Zhigang, Wang Yaping (female), and Ye Guangfu
- Shenzhou-14: Launched in June 2022, crewed by Chen Dong, Liu Yang (female), and Cai Xuzhe
- Shenzhou-15: Launched in November 2022, crewed by Fei Junlong, Deng Qingming, and Zhang Lu
- Shenzhou-16: Launched in May 2023, crewed by Jing Haipeng, Zhu Yangzhu, and Gui Haichao
- Shenzhou-17: Launched in October 2023, crewed by Tang Hongbo, Tang Shengjie, and Jiang Xinlin
- Shenzhou-18: Scheduled for April 2024, to be crewed by Ye Guangfu, Li Cong, and Li Guangsu
- Shenzhou-19: Scheduled for October 2024, to be crewed by Cai Xuzhe, Song Lingdong, and Wang Haoze (female)