China’s astronauts complete spacewalk at new Tiangong space station
- Wang Yaping was the first female Chinese astronaut to undertake a spacewalk, the programme for China’s manned space flight
- The second manned mission to Tiangong to date is expected to last a total of six months, which would make it the longest in Chinese space flight history
Chinese astronauts have once again completed an outdoor mission at the Tiangong (Heavenly Palace) space station, which is currently under construction.
Wang Yaping was the first female Chinese astronaut to undertake a spacewalk, the programme for China's manned space flight reported on Sunday.
At 8.28pm local time, astronauts Zhai Zhigang, 55, and Wang Yaping, 41, left the space station's Tianhe (Heavenly Harmony) core module to begin outboard activities.
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First spacewalk by a Chinese female astronaut during Shenzhou 13 crew space station mission
The current outboard mission is the first of several planned activities for the crew of three, who set off on their mission on October 16.
Among other things, the astronauts want to test systems and conduct scientific experiments during their mission.
The second manned mission to the Tiangong space station to date is expected to last a total of six months, which would make it the longest in Chinese space flight history.