Shenzhou 10

Content sourced from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.

Shenzhou 10 was China’s fifth crewed space mission. It launched on June 11, 2013, from the Jiuquan launch site in Inner Mongolia using a Long March 2F rocket. The crew consisted of three astronauts: Nie Haisheng (mission commander, who had flown before on Shenzhou 6), Zhang Xiaoguang, and Wang Yaping (the second Chinese woman in space).

The spacecraft docked with the Tiangong-1 space lab on June 13, 2013. While docked, the crew carried out medical tests, technology demonstrations, and scientific experiments. Wang Yaping also gave a live physics lesson to students on Earth from aboard Tiangong-1.

Shenzhou 10 stayed attached to Tiangong-1 for about 12 days. On June 23, the crew performed a manual re-docking maneuver, and they undocked again on June 25 to begin their return home. The mission ended with a landing in Inner Mongolia on June 26, 2013, after a total duration of 14 days, 14 hours, and 29 minutes.

Xi Jinping attended the launch and departure ceremonies, highlighting the mission’s significance. Shenzhou 10 demonstrated China’s growing capabilities in human spaceflight and docking with a space lab module.