Overview
- Zhang Lu and Wu Fei completed an approximately eight-hour EVA on December 9 to assess Shenzhou-20’s cracked viewport and work outside Tiangong.
- Mission control said the pair photographed the damage, though authorities have not released imagery from the inspection.
- During the same EVA, the crew installed external debris-protection shielding on the station and replaced a multi-layer temperature-control adapter cover.
- The cracked window discovered in early November made Shenzhou-20 unsafe for crewed reentry, leading the Shenzhou-20 crew to return on Shenzhou-21 on November 14 with no injuries reported.
- Shenzhou-22, launched uncrewed on November 25, now serves as the on-orbit lifeboat as China plans an uncrewed return of Shenzhou-20 with a protective patch and accelerates Shenzhou-23 and Long March 2F production.