JIUQUAN SATELLITE LAUNCH CENTER, China (AP) — China’s space agency is making final preparations to send the Shenzhou-18 crew into low-Earth orbit on Thursday as part of its ambitious space program that aims to put people on the moon by 2030.
In a press conference on Wednesday, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) introduced the three astronauts: Commander Ye Guangfu, 43, a veteran astronaut who was part of the Shenzhou-13 mission in 2021; and astronauts Li Cong, 34, and Li Guangsu, 36, who will go to space for the first time.
The three-member crew’s spacecraft is set for lift-off at 8:59 p.m. (1259 GMT) from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on the edge of the Gobi Desert in the country’s northwest. They will relieve the Shenzhou-17 team, who have manned China’s Tiangong space station since last October.
The crew will spend about six months on the space station. They will conduct scientific tests, install space debris protection equipment on the space station, carry out payload experiments, and popularize science education, among other things, according to Lin Xiqiang, deputy director of the CMSA.
Suns guard Grayson Allen aggravates ankle injury vs. Timberwolves. Phoenix falls into 0
Italy starting Davis Cup title defense against Brazil and US plays Chile
Sarah Paulson, 49, talks aging gracefully without Botox: 'I don't shoot anything into my face'
Hollyoaks star Theo Graham is the latest actor to leave the soap amid massive cast cull
White House opposes potential stand
Genius iPhone hack will save you so much time when traveling
Tunisian journalist sentenced to 6 months in prison for insulting an official
Tom Holland confirms he is definitely returning for a fourth Spider
'Alarm bells go off when there's a 20
Tragedy as five migrants die crossing Channel trying to reach Britain
Arsenal crash OUT of the Champions League after losing to Harry Kane's Bayern Munich in the quarter