Shenzhou XXI astronauts to return to Earth soon as handover task completed

Crew members of the Shenzhou XXI mission, who have spent nearly seven months on board the Tiangong space station, will return to Earth very soon, according to a statement released on Thursday by the China Manned Space Agency.

The three Shenzhou XXI astronauts — mission commander Senior Colonel Zhang Lu, spaceflight engineer Major Wu Fei and payload specialist Zhang Hongzhang — have completed all their assigned tasks and will fly back aboard the Shenzhou XXII crew ship, the statement said.

Ground recovery personnel at the Dongfeng landing site in the Inner Mongolia autonomous region, along with other relevant systems, have been preparing for their return, it added.