China: Astronauts Return Safely

Three Chinese astronauts returned safely to earth

Three Chinese astronauts returned safely to earth on Wednesday after a 15-day mission that included docking exercises, a televised science demonstration for children and a phone call from their country’s president, Xi Jinping, state television reported. The Shenzhou 10 capsule landed in northeast China, ending China’s fifth manned space mission.

China is seeking to master the skills and technology needed to operate a manned space lab for long stretches, and the crew on the latest flight practiced rendezvous and docking exercises with the orbiting Tiangong 1 space module, a small prototype of such a lab. China first sent an astronaut into space in 2003, and government engineers have said they may eventually try to send an astronaut to the moon.