China plans to launch two crewed spacecraft, Shenzhou-20, and Shenzhou-21, along with the Tianzhou-9 cargo spacecraft this year. The China Manned Space Agency publicly released the mission insignias for these three spaceflight missions on Jan. 20.
Since the Shenzhou 5 mission in 2003, each crewed flight has featured a specially designed mission insignia. Starting in 2023, the office has opened solicitations to the public for the annual insignias associated with crewed spaceflight missions.
According to the flight mission schedule, Shenzhou-20 and Shenzhou-21 will be launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, with each crew consisting of three astronauts. After launch, Shenzhou-20 will dock at the radial port of the core module, while Shenzhou-21 will dock at the forward port.
During these crewed missions, the main tasks will include conducting extravehicular activities, managing cargo airlock operations, continuing space science experiments and technology tests, and performing platform management, astronaut support, and educational outreach activities.
In the second half of this year, China also plans to launch the Tianzhou-9 cargo spacecraft from the Wenchang Space Launch Site. After its launch, Tianzhou-9 will dock at the rear port of the core module, primarily delivering supplies for astronaut habitation, extravehicular activity consumables, maintenance parts for platform safety, propellants, and various payloads and samples for ongoing missions, while also handling on-orbit waste disposal.
Once the Chinese space station is fully operational, the manned space station program will officially enter the application and development phase, with plans to launch two crewed spacecraft and one to two cargo spacecraft each year.
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