After the launch of Shenzhou-18, after 6.5 hours of rapid rendezvous and docking technology, it was successfully docked in the core module of the space station "Tianhe", and the crew of three astronauts was transferred from the spacecraft return module to the orbital module. At 05:04 on April 26, 2024, Beijing time, the Shenzhou-17 crew opened the "door", and the six astronauts of the two crews completed the space rendezvous, and they also left a precious group photo.
From this group photo, we also see young faces, because this is a group photo of the "youngest crew in history" and the "post-80s crew", five of the six astronaut crews are post-80s, and the younger generation of astronauts has become the backbone of China's manned spaceflight!
Two of the six astronauts, Tang Hongbo and Ye Guangfu, are China's second batch of astronauts, and with the addition of Chen Dong, who previously flew the Shenzhou-14 mission, there are already three commanders in China's second batch of astronauts.
Among the six astronauts who met the division, except for the two commanders, the remaining four astronauts are all flying missions for the first time, so they are all "newcomers", and they are all the third batch of Chinese astronauts. China's third batch of astronauts, including a female astronaut, has a total of 18 astronauts, and will gradually begin to appear on future manned missions.
When we see this photo, it also means the official start of the Shenzhou 18 manned mission, and it is also the end of the Shenzhou 17 mission. After completing the handover of the in-orbit mission in orbit for about 5 days, it is expected that the Shenzhou-17 manned spacecraft will carry out the return mission on April 30, and Tang Hongbo, Tang Shengjie and Jiang Xinlin will return to the earth after flying in space for more than 6 months!
It is worth noting that when Shenzhou 17 returns to Earth, astronaut Tang Hongbo will also become China's longest astronaut in space, which has been 9 months, of course, this record will not be maintained for too long, and will soon be broken by Ye Guangfu.
After the six-month flight of Shenzhou 18, Ye Guangfu's total space flight time will reach 12 months, which is exactly one year.
The three astronauts of Shenzhou-17 carried out two spacewalks during their six-month in-orbit flight, and completed the repair of the solar wing of the core module of the Chinese space station "Tianhe", which was also the first time that China has manned a space flight.
According to the plan, the six-month space mission that Shenzhou 18 is about to start is also very rich. In addition to the regular maintenance work, it is necessary to install reinforcement devices on the meteorite particle protection device, which can be regarded as a supplement to the Shenzhou 17 out-of-cabin repair space station work, and will also arrange the out-of-cabin inspection work according to the impact of meteorite particles.
Of course, the six-month space mission of the three astronauts of Shenzhou-18 will not only be spacewalks, but also carry out more than 90 space experiments (experiments), mainly in the fields of space materials science, microgravity basic physics, and space life science.
In particular, the orbital aquatic ecology research project is also the first in China, which will carry out space fish farming projects for zebrafish and goldfish algae, and establish a stable operation of the space self-circulating aquatic ecosystem on the space station.
With the successful launch of the Shenzhou 18 manned spacecraft, three astronauts Ye Guangfu, Li Cong and Li Guangsu settled in the Chinese space station, which also means the successful conclusion of the Shenzhou 18 mission, at this moment in the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center The Shenzhou 19 manned spacecraft can temporarily "rest", its backup mission has ended, and it will go straight to space as the protagonist after six months!
The astronaut crews of the two manned launch missions in 2024 have actually been determined long ago, especially according to the composition of the Shenzhou 18 crew, we can almost determine the situation of the Shenzhou 19 crew.
The command of the Shenzhou 19 mission is likely to be held by Chen Dong, who will return to Tiangong with the two third batch of astronauts to carry out the flight mission, and can only say goodbye in six months!
Six months is too far for us to focus on the present, China's aerospace will be very busy in the next few days, not only to welcome the return of the Shenzhou 17 manned spacecraft, but also to launch Chang'e-6 to the far side of the moon for sampling, which is worth looking forward to!
Text/Singularity Three minutes, the picture source is invaded and deleted on the Internet.