China Launches Mission Including Its Youngest Astronaut
Shenzhou 21 launched from China’s Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre and carried three crew members — Zhang Lu, Wu Fei and Zhang Hongzhang — to the Tiangong Space Station. Wu Fei, aged 32 at the time of launch, became the youngest Chinese astronaut to fly into space. The mission will relieve the preceding crew and mark a new rotation on the station.
Experimentation and Duration
During their approximately six-month stay aboard Tiangong, the crew will conduct scientific experiments in life sciences, materials and space environment studies. Among the payloads are small mammals — four black mice — which are being flown for the first time aboard the Chinese station to study biological adaptation in low gravity.
Strategic Context
The launch underscores China’s accelerating crewed space programme as it pushes toward a planned crewed lunar mission by 2030. Including a younger astronaut signals the broader strategy of bringing more early-career personnel into China’s space-flight programme and expanding mission frequency.
