According to the China Manned Space Engineering Office (CMS), to carry out the mission, Wang Yaping and Zhuo Zhigang left the Tiangong station's main module for more than six hours to install equipment and conduct experiments with the Tiangong station's robotic arm in outer space, while the remaining member of the team - astronaut Ye Guangfu - assisted the process from inside the space station.
Wang Yaping, 41, is one of three astronauts currently on a mission at the Tiangong space station. The three began their space journey on October 16 and will spend six months inside the Tianhe module, the core module of the space station.
Two astronauts on a mission in space. - Photo: Xinhua
"This is the first activity outside the space station of the Shenzhou-13 crew, and also the first activity in Chinese space history involving a female astronaut," CMS said. "The entire process went smoothly."
In a video posted by the South China Morning Post, the astronauts waved to people outside the space station during a live broadcast back to Earth. This is not Wang Yaping’s first time in space. In 2013, she spent 15 days in orbit during the Shenzhou-10 mission.
Ms. Vuong A Binh. - Photo: Internet
The Tiangong station is currently under construction and is expected to be operational for at least the next 10 years. According to the plan, the Tianhe module of the terminal station will also be connected to the other two parts, Mengtian and Wentian. The completed space station will weigh about 66 tons, much smaller than the International Space Station. The International Space Station launched its first module in 1998, weighing about 450 tons.
This is the third space flight in the construction of the Tiangong station, during this mission, the crew will continue to perform three more times out of the module to install equipment, preparing for the expansion of the space station. In addition, the astronauts will also evaluate living conditions outside of space and conduct experiments in the field of space medicine.
The moment Ms. Wang Yaping made history when she became the first woman to walk in space:
