Astronauts of the Shenzhou-19 mission arrived at the Chinese space station and began the handover of their shift

The Chinese crew of the Shenzhou-19 space mission has successfully arrived at the Chinese space station and started the handover process with the crew of the Shenzhou-18 mission. The Shenzhou-19 spacecraft automatically docked with the forward port of the Tianhe Main Module at 11:00 a.m. on Wednesday, approximately 6.5 hours after its launch.

After docking, astronauts Cai Xu-che, Sung Ling-tung and Wang Chao-tse from Shenzhou-19 entered the station to meet the Shenzhou-18 crew. The two crews are now working together for several days to hand over the shift, after which the Shenzhou-18 team will return to Earth on November 4.

Preparations for the arrival of the new crew were completed in advance, allowing for a smooth transition between the two missions. The launch of this handover represents another significant step in the development of China's space programme and in strengthening its presence in Earth orbit.

CMG