Three astronauts from China’s Shenzhou-20 mission — Wang Jie, Chen Zhongrui and Chen Dong — will return to Earth on Friday aboard the replacement Shenzhou-21 capsule after a suspected orbital debris strike delayed their planned 5 November landing. CMSA says all three are in good health and that touchdown preparations are underway at the Dongfeng Landing Site in Inner Mongolia. A Shenzhou-22 vehicle is being readied for future operations. The episode highlights the growing risks posed by orbital debris to crewed spacecraft.
Stranded Shenzhou-20 Crew to Return Friday Aboard Replacement Shenzhou-21 Capsule
Three astronauts from China’s Shenzhou-20 mission — Wang Jie, Chen Zhongrui and Chen Dong — will return to Earth on Friday aboard the replacement Shenzhou-21 capsule after a suspected orbital debris strike delayed their planned 5 November landing. CMSA says all three are in good health and that touchdown preparations are underway at the Dongfeng Landing Site in Inner Mongolia. A Shenzhou-22 vehicle is being readied for future operations. The episode highlights the growing risks posed by orbital debris to crewed spacecraft.
08:23 AM, 11/14/2025Science
Stranded Shenzhou-20 Crew to Return Aboard Replacement Capsule
Three Chinese astronauts who were temporarily stranded aboard the Tiangong space station after their original return capsule was suspected to have been struck by orbital debris will return to Earth on Friday inside the replacement Shenzhou-21 spacecraft, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) said.
The Shenzhou-20 crew — Wang Jie, Chen Zhongrui and Chen Dong — had been scheduled to land on 5 November, but the planned departure was postponed while engineers assessed a likely impact to their reentry capsule. Instruments indicated the Shenzhou-20 return vehicle may have been struck by a small piece of orbital debris; it is not yet clear whether the impact occurred during flight or while docked to Tiangong.
CMSA said all three astronauts are in good health and that landing preparations are underway for an Earth touchdown at the Dongfeng Landing Site in Inner Mongolia. Emergency response plans were activated after the postponement, and existing protocols called for a replacement vehicle to carry the stranded crew home.
Shenzhou missions operate on three-person rotations, typically lasting around six months and including maintenance and repairs to the Tiangong outpost. With the arrival of the Shenzhou-21 replacement crew on 1 November, two three-person teams have temporarily been aboard the station.
Officials also said a Shenzhou-22 spacecraft is being prepared for future operations from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in the Gobi Desert; it will be launched at an appropriate time to support ongoing missions and contingency needs.
"The Shenzhou-20 crewed spacecraft is suspected to have been struck by a small piece of orbital debris, and assessment of the impact and associated risks is currently underway," CMSA said.
The incident underscores the growing hazard posed by orbital debris. Last year, debris from a broken Russian satellite briefly forced International Space Station crew to shelter for nearly an hour; initial estimates suggested that breakup created over 100 pieces of trackable debris. Experts estimate there may be roughly 200,000 objects between 1–10 centimetres and tens of thousands of pieces larger than 10 cm in the congested orbital region where many satellites operate.
What happens next: Shenzhou-21 will carry the Shenzhou-20 crew back to Earth on Friday, while the Shenzhou-21 crew are expected to return next year in their own spacecraft. CMSA continues to evaluate the Shenzhou-20 capsule and will provide updates as assessments proceed.