Overview
- A Long March-2F lifted off from Jiuquan at 11:44 a.m. local time, sending Shenzhou-21 toward the Tiangong space station.
- Commander Zhang Lu leads the three-person crew alongside engineer Wu Fei, the youngest Chinese person to fly in space, and Zhang Hongzhang.
- Docking with Tiangong was scheduled about three and a half hours after liftoff, according to mission information reported by AFP.
- The crew will conduct experiments, perform spacewalks, and install debris-protection shields on the station’s exterior.
- China’s human spaceflight agency says the astronauts will also engage in science outreach, as Tiangong supports six-month crew rotations and the nation targets a crewed lunar mission by 2030.