Shenzhou XXI astronauts complete third spacewalk

The Shenzhou XXI mission crew aboard China's Tiangong space station completed their third spacewalk early on Friday morning, the China Manned Space Agency said.

In a news release, the agency said that mission commander Senior Colonel Zhang Lu and spaceflight engineer Major Wu Fei returned to the Wentian science module at 1:36 am after floating for about five and a half hours outside the colossal orbital station.

The third crew member—payload specialist Zhang Hongzhang, a scientist from the Chinese Academy of Science—remained inside the Tiangong station to provide support.

With assistance from ground controllers and the use of a robotic arm, the team completed all their assigned operations, including installing space debris shields and checking the condition of extravehicular equipment.

The spacewalk was the 27th carried out by the Chinese astronauts and the seventh conducted by Zhang Lu, making the 49-year-old Hunan native the new record holder of the most spacewalks undertaken by a Chinese astronaut.

The mission commander performed four spacewalks in his first space journey—the six-month Shenzhou XV mission that began in November 2022.