The three astronauts of China's Shenzhou XIX spaceflight mission are seen in the spaceship on Oct 30, 2024. [Photo/Xinhua]
The Shenzhou XIX manned spaceship successfully docked with the space station combination early on Wednesday, according to the China Manned Space Agency.
The spaceship made a fast, automated rendezvous and docking with the radial port of the space station's core module Tianhe at around 11:00 am.
The whole process took approximately 6.5 hours, the agency said.
The Shenzhou XIX crew — mission commander Senior Colonel Cai Xuzhe, Lieutenant Colonel Song Lingdong and Lieutenant Colonel Wang Haoze — are expected to enter the Tianhe module and will be received by the Shenzhou XVIII crew upon arrival. The two crews will meet in the Tiangong space station.
The spaceship was launched atop a Long March 2F carrier rocket at 4:27 am on Wednesday from the oasis-like Jiuquan spaceport in the Gobi Desert.
