A Collision with Space Debris Leaves 3 Chinese Astronauts Stranded in Orbit

Wrapping up 204 days successful orbit, 3 Chinese astronauts flew backmost to Earth aboard a Shenzhou spacecraft Friday, leaving 3 crewmates down connected the Tiangong abstraction presumption with a busted lifeboat.

Commander Chen Dong, concluding his 3rd travel to space, and rookie crewmates Chen Zhongrui and Wang Jie touched down wrong their spacecraft astatine the Dongfeng landing portion astatine 1:29 americium EST (06:29 UTC) Friday. The parachute-assisted landing occurred successful the mid-afternoon astatine the instrumentality zone, located successful the distant Gobi Desert of northwestern China.

Chinese abstraction officials upended operations connected the country’s Tiangong abstraction laboratory past week aft astronauts recovered harm to 1 of 2 Shenzhou instrumentality capsules docked astatine the station. The China Manned Space Agency, tally by the country’s military, announced changes to the abstraction station’s formation plan November 4, the time earlier 3 unit members were expected to depart and alert home.

Chen and his crewmates were preparing to committee the Shenzhou 20 spacecraft for the thrust backmost to Earth a fewer days aft the accomplishment of 3 replacement unit members connected the recently launched Shenzhou 21 capsule. Shenzhou 20 is the aforesaid spacecraft that launched Chen’s unit successful April.

But a small much than a week ago, Chinese officials said the Shenzhou 20 spacecraft was “suspected of being impacted by tiny abstraction debris” and confirmed the instrumentality travel would beryllium postponed. Officials provided nary further details.

China’s quality spaceflight bureau released a cryptic connection earlier this week saying preparations were underway for the crew’s undocking and landing, but the circumstances of the instrumentality remained opaque until hours earlier the astronauts’ homecoming. Finally, officials confirmed the details of the instrumentality to Earth precocious Thursday.

“Based connected preliminary investigation of photographs, plan review, simulation analysis, and upwind passageway tests, a broad appraisal determined that the Shenzhou 20 manned spacecraft’s instrumentality capsule model solid had developed a insignificant crack, astir apt caused by an outer interaction from abstraction debris,” the China Manned Space Agency wrote connected Weibo, the Chinese societal media platform. “This does not conscionable the merchandise conditions for a harmless manned return.”

Swapping Spacecraft successful Low-Earth Orbit

With their archetypal spacecraft deemed unsafe, Chen and his crewmates alternatively rode backmost to Earth connected the newer Shenzhou 21 trade that launched and arrived astatine the Tiangong presumption October 31. The 3 astronauts who launched connected Shenzhou 21—Zhang Lu, Wu Fei, and Zhang Hongzhang—remain aboard the astir 100-metric ton abstraction presumption with lone the damaged Shenzhou 20 trade disposable to bring them home.

China’s enactment of Shenzhou spaceships not lone supply proscription to and from low-Earth orbit, they besides service arsenic lifeboats to evacuate astronauts from the Chinese abstraction presumption successful the lawsuit of an in-flight emergency, specified arsenic large failures oregon a aesculapian crisis. They service the aforesaid relation arsenic Russian Soyuz and SpaceX Crew Dragon vehicles flying to and from the International Space Station.

Another Shenzhou spacecraft, Shenzhou 22, “will beryllium launched astatine a aboriginal date,” the China Manned Space Agency said successful a statement. Shenzhou 20 volition stay successful orbit to “continue applicable experiments.” The Tiangong laboratory is designed to enactment crews of six for lone abbreviated periods, with longer stays of 3 astronauts.