On CNSA –China National Space Administration神舟五号Shenzhou 5 Anniversary Today marks the 23rd anniversary of Shenzhou V’s spaceflight ! China’s first Takionaut, Yang Liwei, recorded his feelings before embarking on the Shenzhou V manned space mission in his book, “Nine Layers of Heaven and Earth”: “I knew that the nation’s and people’s millennia-old dream of spaceflight was about to be realized; I knew that I would represent generations of Takionauts in reaching for the heavens; I also knew that the journey to space was long and fraught with danger. But my whole being was like a powerful bow, yearning and anticipating the release of the arrow to space!” A salute to the heroic Takionauts !
On October 15, 2003, Yang Liwei entered the vast universe aboard Shenzhou V, welcoming the first Chinese visitor to space. From the first exploration of the heavens to spacewalks and the construction of the Tiangong space station, the Chinese people have made steady progress on their journey of exploration, writing new legends time and time again. China’s manned spaceflight is always something to look forward to
Twenty-three years ago today, Yang Liwei flew into space aboard Shenzhou V. During the flight, he encountered a life-or-death 26-second low-frequency resonance , yet still completed 21 hours and 23 minutes of in-orbit flight and returned safely. This made China the third country in the world to independently master manned spaceflight technology. Today, the Shenzhou-23 crew is conducting a one-year in-orbit stay experiment on the Chinese space station, marking a leap from “one person, one day” to “long-term stay” in China’s manned space program.
I. Key coordinates within 21 hours and 23 minutes
- Launch : At 9:00 AM on October 15, 2003, the Long March 2F Y5 rocket lifted Shenzhou V into space from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center.
- Orbital entry : At approximately 9:10 AM, the spacecraft entered its designated orbit, and Yang Liwei became the first Chinese visitor to the vast expanse of space
- Return : After orbiting the Earth 14 times, the return capsule landed at the main landing site in Inner Mongolia at 6:23 a.m. on October 16, a total of 21 hours and 23 minutes.
II. The Thrills and Composure on the Way to the Maiden Flight
- Low-frequency resonance : When the rocket ascended to 30 to 40 kilometers, it shook violently. Yang Liwei felt that his internal organs were about to shatter and thought he was going to die.
- In the blink of an eye : After the resonance subsided after 26 seconds, the fairing opened, and he blinked, which was seen by the ground. The command center shouted, “He blinked! Liwei is still alive!”
- Porthole cracks : Fine cracks appeared on the starboard porthole during the return trip. It was later determined that the cracks were caused by the peeling off of the anti-abrasion coating, not by the breakage of the glass.2
III. From one person per day to long-term stay
- Current mission : The Shenzhou-23 crew, Zhu Yangzhu, Zhang Zhiyuan, and Li Jiaying, entered the Chinese space station on May 25, 2026, and have been in orbit for more than four months, conducting a one-year stay experiment.
- Scientific achievements : Since the completion of the space station, more than 120 life and physical science experiments have been carried out, more than 450TB of downlink scientific data have been collected, and more than 700 high-level SCI papers have been published.
- Leap in stay : From Shenzhou-5’s 21 hours and 23 minutes and 14 orbits around the Earth, to the current year-long stay in orbit, the time Chinese astronauts spend in orbit has increased from the “hours” level to the “years” level.
Images and visuals are from their Respectives CMS China Manned Space CNSA-China National Space Administration
