The Mengtian is expected to carry out a transposition maneuver on Thursday, after which the China Space Station will complete the formation of the T-shape structure.
China s manned space program has witnessed another milestone, as the Shenzhou-14 taikonauts entered the Mengtian lab module – the third and last part of the three-module China Space Station – on Thursday afternoon, after the new module carried out a transposition to the side docking port, completing in-orbit assembly of the station’s T-shape basic structure.
As seen on live coverage aired by state broadcaster China Central Television (CCTV) on Thursday, Shenzhou-14 mission commander Chen Dong first entered the Mengtian lab module, followed by his fellow crewmembers Liu Yang and Cai Xuzhe.
China successfully launched Mengtian lab module - the third and final part of its three-module home-developed space station - into preset orbit, on Monday afternoon from South China s tropical island province of Hainan, kicking start the final battle of completing the country s T-shape and first-ever permanent space station.
Foreign astronauts are welcome to Tiangong to make greater contributions to the shared future of mankind, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Wang Wenbin said on Monday.