Shenzhou 23
Shenzhou 23 is a planned Chinese spaceflight to the Tiangong space station. It is planned to carry three taikonauts on board a Shenzhou spacecraft. The mission will be the 17th crewed Chinese spaceflight and the 23rd flight overall of the Shenzhou program.
Background
Originally expected to launch around November 2026, the launch of Shenzhou 23 has been brought up April 2026 due to the early launch of its predecessor Shenzhou 22. It will be the 11th crewed flight to the Tiangong space station, and is expected to last approximately 6 months.Mission
On 19 January 2029, China Central Television reported that the Shenzhou 23 spacecraft had arrived at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, two months ahead of the original schedule.The mission will launch from the center on board a Long March 2F rocket. The Shenzhou spacecraft will likely dock with the nadir docking port on the Tianhe core module of the station. Shenzhou 20, which has a cracked window and is currently not considered flightworthy, is currently docked to this port and would need to be undocked before Shenzhou 23 can dock.
Unlike previous six-month missions, the CMSA has announced that one astronaut from Shenzhou 23 is expected to stay in space for a full year. This would allow a Pakistani astronaut to visit Tiangong during the Shenzhou 24 mission scheduled for October 2026.