China launches emergency mission to its area station

The Shenzhou-22 spacecraft that China launched on November 25 has already reached the Tiangong area station, in line with SpaceNews and Chinese state media. Now that it’s docked with the station, the astronauts onboard are now not left and not using a automobile that they will use to go house in case of emergencies. The astronauts a part of the Shenzhou-21 mission haven’t had a lifeboat since November 11, as a result of the crew earlier than they arrived had to make use of their automobile to return to Earth.

On November 5, the astronauts from the Shenzhou-20 mission had been presupposed to make their approach again house aboard their very own spacecraft. However simply hours earlier than their departure from the station, China’s area company found minor cracks of their automobile’s window from a suspected particles influence. The Shenzhou-20 crew flew again to Earth on November 11 utilizing the Shenzhou-21 automobile, which implies the newer crew stayed within the station with no solution to go away for over 10 days.

The Shenzhou-22 spacecraft was supposed to hold three extra astronauts to the station in April or Might 2026. As a substitute, it flew a lot earlier and and not using a crew, stuffed with provides to make up for what the Shenzhou-20 mission astronauts consumed throughout their prolonged keep. It’s going to return again to Earth subsequent 12 months after the present crew is completed with its six-month stint.