Astronauts sent on mission to complete space station

[A simulation video of Shenzhou XIV by the Fifth Academy of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation]

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Crew members of the Shenzhou XIV spaceflight have begun to transport living and mission supplies to the Tiangong space station, according to the China Manned Space Agency.

The agency said in a short release on Monday afternoon that the three astronauts — mission commander Senior Colonel Chen Dong, Senior Colonel Liu Yang and Senior Colonel Cai Xuzhe — entered the Tianzhou 4 cargo spaceship at 12:19 pm and would soon enter the Tianzhou 3 craft.

The two cargo spaceships are linked with Tiangong's core module, named Tianhe.

They will then transport the necessary living and work materials from both spaceships to the Tianhe module, according to the agency.

Each of the two cargo craft contains several metric tons of fuel, which will gradually be pumped into Tiangong to sustain its flight, and hundreds of packages containing the astronauts' daily necessities and personal belongings.

Chen and his teammates arrived at Tiangong on Sunday evening, several hours after their spacecraft was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the northwestern Gobi Desert.

They are scheduled to stay in Tiangong, orbiting 400 kilometers above the Earth, for six months to complete the assembly of the colossal station, which will include components that will arrive throughout the year.

Tiangong currently consists of four sections — the Tianhe core module; the Shenzhou XIV craft; and the Tianzhou 3 and Tianzhou 4 cargo ships.

Shenzhou XIV is the sixth spacecraft to visit Tiangong and the third crewed ship to transport astronauts to the orbiting outpost.