Astronauts in the China Space Station have opened the gate to the Tianzhou-8 supply ship that docked on the station early Saturday.

It took three hours and 17 minutes for the cargo spacecraft to arrive the destination.

Cai Xuzhe, commander of the three-person Shenzhou-19 crew, opened the valve at 8:26 Beijing Time (0026 GMT) and entered Tianzhou-8.

The cargo spacecraft carried around 6 tonnes of supplies, including consumables; propellants; experiment equipment and materials; gift packages for the Spring Festival, Mid-Autumn Festival and Chinese Dragon Boat Festival; and personalized birthday gifts.

Notably, Tianzhou-8 carried "lunar soil bricks" made from simulated lunar soil for the first time. These bricks will undergo exposure experiments aboard the space station to test their mechanical, thermal and radiation resistance properties, providing data for the building of the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS).

The Shenzhou-19 crew will then transfer the supply from Tianzhou-8 to the space station.

(Photos: The Shenzhou-19 crew examine the supplies onboard the Tianzhou-8 ship, China Space Station, November 16, 2024. /China Media Group)