Three Chinese astronauts returned to Earth on Friday after
achieving China's most complex and longest operations in orbit,
major steps forward in the country's effort to build a space
station by 2020. The return of the trio, including the country's
first female astronaut, to a landing zone in a remote and sandy
area of northern China was broadcast to a national audience on
state television network CCTV. The return capsule of the
Shenzhou-9 spacecraft, which lifted off on June 16, hit the
ground about 10:00 am (0200 GMT), after an approach slowed by a
large parachute. Rescue workers quickly surrounded and opened
the capsule, which had turned on its side and looked charred on
the outside. All three astronauts were in good physical
condition, the state-run Xinhua news agency reported, as CCTV
showed them being carried out of the capsule on chairs, smiling
and waving to the cameras. The crew had successfully carried out
China's first manual space docking with the orbiting Tiangong-1
module, a difficult move that