During their nearly seven-month stay in orbit, China's Shenzhou-21 crew completed a series of scientific, medical and technological tasks, contributing to advances in space science, medicine and technology.
The crew members -- Zhang Lu, Wu Fei and Zhang Hongzhang -- returned to Earth aboard the Shenzhou-22 return capsule, which touched down at the Dongfeng landing site in north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region at 20:11 Beijing Time (1211 GMT) on Friday, according to the China Manned Space Agency.
The astronauts were reported to be in good physical condition after landing, according to staff on site.
Since entering the space station on Nov 1, 2025, the Shenzhou-21 crew remained in orbit for nearly seven months, setting a new record for the longest stay in space by a Chinese astronaut crew.
During their record-setting mission, the astronauts carried out a wide range of scientific experiments, technology demonstrations, and station support tasks.
In the field of space science and applications, the team contributed to several landmark accomplishments.
Among the most notable achievements was China's first successful closed-environment breeding of mice in orbit, laying the technological groundwork for future mammalian experiments in space.
The crew also generated low-defect indium selenide crystals in orbit, which have been used on the ground to fabricate high-performance field-effect transistor prototypes that outperform similar devices produced entirely on Earth.
In space medicine, the crew achieved non-contact detection of physiological indicators in orbit through intelligent recognition of subtle facial movements and established a preliminary fatigue assessment model for astronauts during in-orbit exercise.
In the field of space technology, China achieved the aeroponic cultivation of cherry tomatoes and wheat in orbit for the first time, validating key related technologies. The astronauts also successfully carried out the in-orbit ignition of a new ionic liquid propellant and obtained dynamic optical data covering both the catalytic ignition and sustained combustion processes.
The crew also played a key role in supporting the return of the Shenzhou-20 spacecraft.
After the viewport window of the Shenzhou-20 spaceship's return capsule suffered a suspected impact from space debris during its mission, the spacecraft was designated for an uncrewed return mission.
Before its departure, the Shenzhou-21 crew conducted detailed inspections of the docking tunnel and hatch conditions. They systematically sorted and packed return cargo and waste materials and transferred and secured items designated for return to Earth.
On Jan 19, 2026, the return capsule of the Shenzhou-20 spaceship successfully touched down at the Dongfeng landing site.
On May 6, 2026, the team completed preparations for the Tianzhou-9 cargo spacecraft's departure ahead of its undocking.
Five days later, Tianzhou-10 lifted off from the Wenchang Space Launch Site in the southern island province of Hainan. The crew received nearly 6.2 tonnes of supplies delivered by the cargo craft and subsequently carried out inventory checks and cargo transfer operations.
China launched the Shenzhou-21 spaceship on October 31, 2025 to send the Shenzhou-21 crew to its space station for rotation with Shenzhou-20 crew. However, the Shenzhou-20 crew later found that the Shenzhou-20 spaceship's return capsule viewport window suffered a suspected impact from space debris during its mission and was unfit for the crew's return mission.
On November 14, 2025, the Shenzhou-20 crew returned safely aboard the Shenzhou-21 spacecraft. On November 25, 2025, China launched the Shenzhou-22 spaceship to provide a return vessel for the Shenzhou-21 crew.
Shenzhou-21 crew achieves key mission objectives in orbit
