Three Chinese astronauts return after six months in space
The Shenzhou-13 crew, consisting of astronaut Zhai Zhigang, Wang Yaping and Ye Guangfu /
The Shenzhou-13 (Magic Ship) crew, consisting of astronaut Wang Yaping and her two male colleagues Zhai Zhigang and Ye Guangfu, landed in the Gobi desert
After setting a record for time spent in space, the three Chinese astronauts from the Shenzhou-13 (Magic Ship) crew landed on earth this Saturday.
The capsule with astronaut Wang Yaping and her two male colleagues Zhai Zhigang and Ye Guangfu has landed in the Gobi desert in the northwest of the country on Saturday morning.
The landing was broadcast live on Chinese state television.
In total, the return flight of the space station, which orbits about 400 kilometers above Earth, lasted just over nine hours.
The 'Shenzhou 13' crew had been in space for 183 days, since Oct. 16, longer than other Chinese astronauts before them, nearly double the previous Chinese record set last year.
The crew, on the ship. /
In their time in space, the three astronauts -- called taikonauts in China -- made two spacewalks, carried out a whole series of scientific experiments and prepared the expansion of the Chinese space station.
Wang Yaping was not only the first female astronaut to be aboard the core module, but also the first to go on a spacewalk.
In the next mission, a cargo flight is scheduled next month to carry materials and fuel into space for the Shenzhou-14 flight scheduled for June.
Two more modules for the main part of the future Chinese space station will be launched into space later this year.
