First Month Orbit
China’s Shenzhou-23 crew has marked its first month aboard the Tiangong space station with frontier science, daily drills and a small taste of home, baking pumpkin in orbit more than 400 kilometres above the Earth.
Footage shows the three astronauts, Zhu Yangzhu, Zhang Zhiyuan and Li Jiaying, also known as Lai Ka-ying, placing chunks of sweet pumpkin into a space oven inside the station, before sitting down to eat together in orbit.
Other images show the crew moving between experiment racks, installing equipment and exercising as they settle into life aboard China’s orbital outpost.
Space Science Advances
Over the past week, the astronauts used ultrasound equipment to scan each other. The data will support research into blood flow, vascular mapping and changes in muscle groups affected by microgravity.
They also carried out haptic-based tests using space robots, work designed to improve how robotic systems move and respond in orbit.
The experiments are part of China’s plan to turn Tiangong into more than a permanently crewed station, to use it as a platform for longer missions, automated maintenance and future deep-space operations.
Long Mission Begins
Shenzhou-23 launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre on May 24 and docked with Tiangong in the early hours of May 25. Zhu is the mission commander, while Zhang and Li are on their first spaceflights.
One member of the Shenzhou-23 crew is expected to remain aboard Tiangong for about a year, a first for China’s human spaceflight programme. Beijing says the long-duration stay will provide data for future exploration, including the physical demands of keeping astronauts in orbit for extended periods.
CGTN, via Viory.Video
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