Shenzhou-23 Astronauts Arrive at Launch Site | China Space Station
The three astronauts of the Shenzhou-23 crewed spaceflight mission arrived at the launch site at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center (JSLC) in northwest China after a send-off ceremony on Sunday, March 24, 2026, ready to board their spacecraft for a flight to the Tiangong Space Station.
The Shenzhou-23 crewed spacecraft successfully blasted off at 23:08 Beijing Time (15:08 GMT).
The three crew members—commander Zhu Yangzhu, spacecraft pilot Zhang Zhiyuan and payload specialist Lai Ka-ying—were escorted by a squad of motorcycles to the launch site and warmly greeted by crowds of people on both sides along the route.
They will take over command of China's Tiangong Space Station from the Shenzhou-21 crew currently in orbit, and one of them will conduct a one-year in-orbit stay, double the usual duration of previous Shenzhou missions.
Notably, astronaut Lai Ka-ying is also the first astronaut from China's Hong Kong Special Administrative Region (SAR).
Shenzhou-23 marks the 40th flight of China's crewed spaceflight program, and the seventh crewed flight mission since the Tiangong Space Station entered its application and development phase in late 2022.
Zhu Yangzhu 朱杨柱, Commander & Flight Engineer (2nd spaceflight)
Zhang Zhiyuan 张志远, Pilot (first spaceflight)
Duration: 3 minutes
Date: May 24, 2026
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