Three astronauts stationed in China's Tiangong space station
are preparing for their return trip in the middle of April,
packing up personal items, experimental products and other
materials, putting equipment into place and exercising to
prepare their bodies for Earth's gravity.
The astronauts, Zhai Zhigang, Wang Yaping and Ye Guangfu,
have to tidy up a large number of metrials, including goods
on the Tianzhou 3 cargo spacecraft, said Zhong Weiwei, an
associate ressarcher at the China Astronaut Research
and Training Center.
Living in space about six months, a record in China's history,
they have completed more than 20 scientific tasks and will
bring back samples with them, according to Zhong.
He said the astronauts have to put all equipment in place
since there will be a gap of more than one month before
the astronauts of Shenzhou XIV enter the space station.
The physical conditions and psychological states of the
three astronauts are better than expected, meeting the
requirements for a return trip, said the associate
researcher from the center's aerospace medical
engineering office.
Based on their in-orbit physical examinations and date,
experts have adjusted exercise plans for them to keep
fitness in order to ensure a safe landing, Zhou said.
The Shenzhou XIII mission was launched on Oct 16 by
Long March 2F carrier rocket that blasted off from the
Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China's
Gobi Desert, with the srew soon entering the Tiangong station.
Besides their tasks, they have also delivered two live
lectures from the space station, showing the student their
living and woring areas at the Tianhe croe module and
several scientific experiments under zero-gravity conditions
and answering real-time questions from students.