Shenzhou 18
Shenzhou 18 was a Chinese spaceflight to the Tiangong space station, launched on 25 April 2024. It carried three People's Liberation Army Astronaut Corps taikonauts on board a Shenzhou spacecraft. The mission was the thirteenth crewed Chinese spaceflight and the eighteenth flight overall of the Shenzhou program.
The three crew members in this mission contributed to breaking the record for the most people simultaneously in orbit, set after the Soyuz MS-26 mission launched on 11 September with its three crew members, along with the four crew members of the private Polaris Dawn mission launched on 10 September, and the nine crew members on the International Space Station.
Background
Shenzhou 18 is the seventh flight to the Tiangong space station, and is expected to last approximately 6 months. It will depart following the arrival of the Shenzhou 19 crew.The crew of Shenzhou 18 was announced on April 24, 2024.
Mission
The mission launched from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on board a Long March 2F rocket on 25 April 2024 at 12:59:00UTC, near the end of the Shenzhou 17 mission. Approximately 6.5 hours after launch, the spacecraft docked at the nadir port of the station's Tianhe core module.Spacewalks
On 28 May 2024, Ye Guangfu and Li Guangsu carried out China's longest spacewalk to date, exiting the airlock of the Wentian lab module and spending approximately 8.5 hours installing space debris protection shields and inspecting the exterior of the station.Another spacewalk was conducted on 3 July 2024, during which Ye Guangfu and Li Cong installed further space debris protection shields on pipelines, cables, and other equipment.