3 Chinese astronauts return to Earth after spending 192 days at Tiangong space station

The Shenzhou-18 crew, consisting of three Chinese astronauts, returned to Earth safely in the early morning on Monday after completing a six-month mission at the Tiangong space station.

The Shenzhou-18 return capsule, carrying astronauts Ye Guangfu, Li Cong, and Li Guangsu, touched down at the Dongfeng landing site in north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region at 1:24 a.m. (Beijing Time). The crew had all exited the capsule by 2:15 a.m., according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA), as reported by Xinhua news agency.

After spending 192 days in orbit, all three astronauts were in good health, and the Shenzhou-18 manned mission was deemed a success, said the CMSA.

Ye, the Shenzhou-18 mission commander, has become the first Chinese astronaut to accumulate more than a year in space, setting a new record for the longest duration of stay in orbit by a Chinese astronaut. He previously served as a crew member in the Shenzhou-13 mission from October 2021 to April 2022.

“Chinese astronauts have flown to space in successive missions. I believe that the record for duration in orbit will be broken in the near future,” Ye stated.

China launched the Shenzhou-18 manned spaceship on April 25. During the mission, the crew utilized scientific experiment cabinets and extravehicular payloads to conduct dozens of experiments in fields such as basic physics in microgravity, space material science, space life science, space medicine, and space technology.

They replaced the burner for the gas experiment in the combustion experiment cabinet and tested samples in the fluid physics experiment cabinet as planned. The crew also conducted in-orbit training on spacecraft rendezvous and docking.

The Shenzhou-18 astronauts performed extravehicular activities twice, with their first spacewalk in May setting a new record for the longest single spacewalk by Chinese astronauts. Assisted by the space station’s robotic arm and a team on Earth, they worked for about eight-and-a-half hours during their first extravehicular activity, completing multiple tasks, including the installation of space debris protection devices.

The crew also engaged in emergency decision-making research. Using a computer and corresponding software, they assessed basic cognitive abilities, risk perception, decision-making styles, and completed comprehensive decision-making tasks. Ground personnel used the test results to evaluate the astronauts’ emergency decision-making abilities in orbit and to study how factors such as duration of stay, emotional state, and workload influenced their performance.

During the mission, the astronauts underwent regular medical check-ups, including routine examinations and dynamic monitoring of heart rate and blood pressure, which helped to comprehensively monitor their physical health.

The Shenzhou-18 trio also created a space “aquarium” using zebrafish and algae to study how the space environment affects growth and system balance, marking a breakthrough in raising vertebrates in space. They found that zebrafish exhibited abnormal orientation behaviors in microgravity, such as upside-down swimming, spinning, and circling.

Scientists will later use the returned water samples, fish eggs, and other specimens, along with videos of the zebrafish’s movement behaviors, to research the impact of the space environment on the growth, development, and behavior of vertebrates and to support studies on material cycling in a closed space ecosystem.

The astronauts also cultivated plants in a “space garden,” growing cherry tomatoes and lettuce. “Being able to eat fresh vegetables in space is truly a blessing. These green plants have also brought a touch of green and good cheer to our busy work,” Li said.

In 2025, China’s manned space program plans to launch the Shenzhou-20 and Shenzhou-21 crewed missions, as well as the Tianzhou-9 cargo craft for in-orbit supplies, according to the CMSA.