On April 12, 1961, Soviet cosmonaut Gagarin took 1 hour and 48 minutes to orbit the Earth in the Vostok 1 spacecraft, realizing the dream of human beings to go into space. Fifty years later, on 7 April 2011, the United Nations General Assembly made a resolution proclaiming 12 April as the International Day of Human Space Flight, also known as "World Space Day", to celebrate the beginning of the human space era.
Today, the world's manned space flight has gone through 63 years, and many countries have their own manned space flight capabilities.
China's manned spaceflight
Twenty-one years ago, on 15 October 2003, astronaut Yang Liwei flew aboard the "Shenzhou 5" spacecraft to carry out a manned space flight, fulfilling the Chinese nation's wish to fly to space for a thousand years, making the mainland the third country in the world capable of independently carrying out manned space activities, and laying the foundation for further space scientific research.
Today, on the occasion of the 63rd World Space Day, let us pay tribute to China's space heroes.
China's first person in space Yang Liwei (Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Li Gang/Xinhua News Agency Gallery)
On 15 October 2003, astronaut Yang Liwei flew aboard the "Shenzhou 5" spacecraft to carry out a manned space flight, fulfilling the Chinese nation's wish to fly to the sky for a thousand years, making the mainland the third country in the world capable of independently carrying out manned space activities.
The first batch of astronauts Fei Junlong (China Network Yang Jia Photography)
In October 2005 and November 2022, astronaut Fei Junlong successfully completed the two manned space missions of "Shenzhou 6" and "Shenzhou 15".
The first batch of astronauts Nie Haisheng (China Network Yang Jia Photography)
In October 2005, June 2013 and December 2019, astronaut Nie Haisheng successfully completed the three manned missions of "Shenzhou 6", "Shenzhou 10" and "Shenzhou 12".
The first batch of astronauts Zhai Zhigang (China Network Yang Jia photography)
From September 2008 and October 2021 to April 2022, astronaut Zhai Zhigang successfully completed the two manned missions of "Shenzhou 7" and "Shenzhou 13".
The first batch of astronauts Liu Boming (China Network Yang Jia Photography)
In September 2008 and from June to September 2021, astronaut Liu Boming successfully completed the two manned missions of "Shenzhou 7" and "Shenzhou 12".
The first batch of astronauts Jing Haipeng (China Network Yang Jia Photography)
In September 2008, June 2012, October to November 2016, and May to October 2023, astronaut Jing Haipeng successfully completed four manned missions of "Shenzhou 7", "Shenzhou 9", "Shenzhou 11" and "Shenzhou 16".
The first batch of astronauts Liu Wang (Wang Jiangbo Photography/China Net)
In June 2012, astronaut Liu Wang successfully completed the manned mission of "Shenzhou 9".
The second batch of astronauts Liu Yang (China Network Yang Jia Photography)
In June 2012 and from June to December 2022, astronaut Liu Yang successfully completed the two manned missions of "Shenzhou 9" and "Shenzhou 14".
The first batch of astronauts Zhang Xiaoguang (China Network Zheng Liang photography)
In June 2013, astronaut Zhang Xiaoguang successfully completed the manned mission of "Shenzhou 10".
The second batch of astronauts Wang Yaping (China Network Yang Jia photography)
In June 2013 and from October 2021 to April 2022, astronaut Wang Yaping successfully completed the two manned missions of "Shenzhou 10" and "Shenzhou 13".
The second batch of astronauts Chen Dong (China Network Yang Jia Photography)
From October to November 2016 and from June to December 2022, astronaut Chen Dong successfully completed the two manned missions of "Shenzhou 11" and "Shenzhou 14".
The second batch of astronauts Tang Hongbo (Yang Jia photography by China Network)
From June to September 2021, astronaut Tang Hongbo successfully completed the "Shenzhou 12" manned mission. At present, Tang Hongbo is carrying out the manned mission of Shenzhou 17.
The second batch of astronauts Ye Guangfu (China Network Yang Jia photography)
From October 2021 to April 2022, astronaut Ye Guangfu successfully completed the manned mission of "Shenzhou 13".
The second batch of astronauts Cai Xuzhe (China Network Yang Jia Photography)
From June to December 2022, astronaut Cai Xuzhe successfully completed the "Shenzhou-14" manned mission.
The first batch of astronauts Deng Qingming (China Network Yang Jia Photography)
From November 2022 to June 2023, astronaut Deng Qingming successfully completed the manned mission of "Shenzhou 15".
The second batch of astronauts Zhang Lu (China Network Yang Jia photography)
From November 2022 to June 2023, astronaut Zhang Lu successfully completed the manned mission of "Shenzhou 15".
The third batch of astronauts Zhu Yangzhu (China Network Yang Jia photography)
From May to October 2023, astronaut Zhu Yangzhu successfully completed the "Shenzhou 16" manned mission.
The third batch of astronauts Gui Haichao (China Network Yang Jia Photography)
From May to October 2023, astronaut Gui Haichao successfully completed the "Shenzhou 16" manned mission.
The third batch of astronauts Tang Shengjie (China Network Yang Jia Photography)
From October 2023, astronaut Tang Shengjie is carrying out the "Shenzhou 17" manned mission.
The third batch of astronauts Jiang Xinlin (Yang Jia photography by China Network)
From October 2023, astronaut Jiang Xinlin is carrying out the "Shenzhou 17" manned mission.
Every minute and every second is breaking the record for the duration of time in orbit
So far (April 12), a total of 20 Chinese astronauts have flown or are carrying out manned missions. Among them, Jing Haipeng has carried out a total of 4 missions, and is the astronaut with the most manned flights.
As of February 26, 2024, Shenzhou-17 astronaut Tang Hongbo, who is on a business trip to China's space station, has a total flight time of 215 days in orbit, becoming China's longest astronaut in orbit. At present, every minute and second of Tang Hongbo's "business trip" is setting a record for China's longest time in orbit.
The latest news from Chinese astronauts
During the two sessions of the National People's Congress in 2024, astronaut Liu Yang revealed in an interview with reporters that the fourth batch of astronauts in the mainland will be included after the selection is completed.
According to reports, the fourth batch of reserve astronauts plans to select 12 to 14 reserve astronauts, including three categories: space pilots, space flight engineers, and payload experts, and for the first time in Hong Kong and Macao.
According to the China Manned Space Office, 2024 project plans 2 manned missions, according to the past practice, the astronaut crew will adopt the "1+2" mode of "bringing the old with the new", and it is expected that 4 "new" astronauts will appear and perform manned missions this year.