China Unveils Shenzhou-19 Crew for Space Station Mission

Chinese astronauts Cai Xuzhe, Song Lingdong and Wang Haoze will carry out the Shenzhou-19 crewed spaceflight mission, and Cai will be the commander, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced at a press conference on Tuesday. Spokesperson of the agency, Lin Xiqiang, said the Shenzhou-19 crewed spaceship is scheduled to be launched on Wednesday morning from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China. Cai completed the Shenzhou-14 space mission in 2022. Song and Wang, among the third batch of Chinese astronauts, are newcomers to space. Both of them were born in the 1990s. Song was a former air force pilot before being selected as an astronaut, and Wang previously served as a senior engineer at the Academy of Aerospace Propulsion Technology under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. Wang is currently China's only female space flight engineer and will become the third Chinese woman to embark on a crewed spaceflight mission, the agency noted. The Shenzhou-19 astronauts will complete an in-orbit rotation with the Shenzhou-18 trio and stay at the space station, Tiangong, for approximately six months. During the mission, they will witness the arrival of the Tianzhou-8 cargo craft and Shenzhou-20 crewed spaceship Source: Qatar News Agency