Cai Xuzhe, Wang Haoze, and Song Lingdong, the three Chinese astronauts of the Shenzhou-19 mission, are now back on Earth after spending six months at the Chinese space station, Tiangong. The cosmonauts landed in the return capsule of the Shenzhou-20 spacecraft on Wednesday in the Gobi Desert, Inner Mongolia, at 7:08 Spanish time, as reported by Efe.
Before their departure, the Shenzhou-19 crew handed over the space station to the Shenzhou-20 members, whose three crew members arrived at Tiangong last Friday.
The astronauts' return was scheduled for Tuesday, but Chinese space program authorities decided to postpone it due to adverse weather conditions in the landing area.
The crew of the Shenzhou-19 mission arrived at Tiangong in late October last year and during their stay, they conducted extravehicular activities and various scientific research.
It is estimated that it takes around six months for astronauts who have participated in long-term space missions to return to their normal physical condition and resume training.
Tiangong will operate for about ten years and could become one of the main operational orbital platforms, especially as the International Space Station —led by the United States and from which China is banned due to military ties in its space program— approaches its retirement, scheduled for 2030.
China has heavily invested in its space program and has successfully landed the Chang'e 4 probe on the far side of the Moon —a first-time achievement— and reached Mars for the first time, becoming the third country —after the United States and the former Soviet Union— to achieve a Mars landing.
Additionally, China plans to build a scientific exploration base with Russia and other countries at the South Pole of the Moon.