Beijing, April 17 (BNA): China will launch three more astronauts to its latest space station in June, an official said Sunday, after the last crew returned this weekend after six months in orbit.
The crew of the Shenzhou 14 capsule will spend six months in Tiangong to add two units to the station, Hao Chun, director of the China Aerospace Engineering Office, said at a press conference.
China’s ambitious space program launched its first astronaut into orbit in 2003, and robotic vehicles landed on the moon in 2013, and on Mars last year. Officials discussed a possible manned mission to the Moon.
The base unit of the Tiangong of Heavenly Palace, launched in April 2021. Plans call for construction to be completed this year, according to the Associated Press.
Hao said the Wentian unit will be launched in July and the Mengtian unit will start in October.
Towards the end of the Shenzhou 14 crew’s mission, Hao said, three more astronauts will be launched aboard Shenzhou 15 for six months. He added that the two crews will overlap for three to five days, the first time the station has carried six people.
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