The return capsule of China's Shenzhou-22 crewed spaceship, carrying the three Shenzhou-21 astronauts, touched down at the Dongfeng landing site in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region at 8:11 p.m. on Friday, according to the China Manned Space Agency.

On-site medical personnel confirmed that astronauts Zhang Lu, Wu Fei and Zhang Hongzhang were all in good health. The mission was a complete success.

At 7:20 p.m., the Beijing Aerospace Control Center sent the return command from the ground. The return capsule of the Shenzhou-22 spaceship then separated from the orbital capsule and later touched down successfully. The search and recovery team located the capsule and arrived at the landing site in a timely manner.

"One person's sea of stars, a nation's unwavering devotion," Zhang Lu, the crew commander, said after exiting the capsule. He also brought back an apple from the space station with the Chinese characters for "peace" written on it, which he dedicated to all science and technology workers ahead of China's Science and Technology Workers' Day on Saturday.

"This mission has taught me that the most beautiful form of youth is to answer the call of one's country," said Wu Fei, the youngest Chinese astronaut to have completed a space mission. He added that he would turn the experience in space into motivation to continue serving China's manned space program.

"Looking at Earth from space, one deeply feels that humanity is an inseparable community with a shared future," said Zhang Hongzhang, adding that returning to Earth felt "deeply reassuring and heartwarming."

The Shenzhou-21 mission

The Shenzhou-21 crew entered the China Space Station on November 1, 2025, and spent 210 days in orbit, updating the record for the longest single-crew mission by Chinese astronauts.

During their stay, the crew carried out three extravehicular activities, or spacewalks, and completed tasks like inspecting the return capsule window of the Shenzhou-20 spacecraft, installing space debris protection devices on the space station and conducting multiple cargo transfer operations.

Working closely with researchers on the ground, the crew also completed numerous scientific experiments in fields such as microgravity fundamental physics, space materials science, space life science, aerospace medicine and space technology.

Why returned with Shenzhou-22 spaceship?

While in orbit, the Shenzhou-21 crew witnessed and experienced several historic firsts in China's manned space program:

– The first postponed return of spacecraft due to space debris impact.

– The first crew returned aboard a different spacecraft from launch.

– The first emergency spacecraft launch.

They also witnessed the entire manned space program mobilizing for an emergency response, with teams on the ground and in space working in close coordination.

The Shenzhou-22 spacecraft that carried the crew home was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on November 25, 2025. It subsequently docked with the forward port of the Tianhe core module.

The Shenzhou-21 spacecraft, which the crew originally rode into orbit, replaced the space debris-stricken Shenzhou-20 spacecraft on November 14, 2025, and safely escorted the Shenzhou-20 crew back to Earth.

(Geng Xiuhui contributed to the story.)