Shenzhou-20 was left docked at China’s Tiangong space station after a debris impact cracked a window, and its crew returned on Shenzhou-21. That swap has temporarily left the station without an immediately available, undamaged return craft for the incoming team, including 32-year-old Wu Fei. CMSA says Shenzhou-22 will be launched "at an appropriate time," and officials may accelerate the mission; if Shenzhou-20 cannot be repaired in orbit it may be undocked and deorbited to free a docking port.
Debris-Damaged Shenzhou-20 Left at Tiangong — Crew Returned on Shenzhou-21, Leaving Temporary Evacuation Gap
Shenzhou-20 was left docked at China’s Tiangong space station after a debris impact cracked a window, and its crew returned on Shenzhou-21. That swap has temporarily left the station without an immediately available, undamaged return craft for the incoming team, including 32-year-old Wu Fei. CMSA says Shenzhou-22 will be launched "at an appropriate time," and officials may accelerate the mission; if Shenzhou-20 cannot be repaired in orbit it may be undocked and deorbited to free a docking port.
08:26 PM, 11/14/2025Science
What happened
BEIJING — Chinese managers left the Shenzhou-20 spacecraft docked at the Tiangong space station after concluding that a crack in one of its windows — caused by debris impact — made the capsule unsafe for crewed return. The Shenzhou-20 crew (Chen Dong, Chen Zhongrui and Wang Jie) instead returned to Earth aboard Shenzhou-21, a vehicle that had arrived at Tiangong about two weeks earlier and was originally scheduled to remain attached to the station for another six months.
Why this matters
The swap created an unprecedented situation for China’s permanently crewed Tiangong: there is currently no immediately available, undamaged return spacecraft docked to the station to evacuate the incoming crew in the event of an emergency. Among the crew members now reliant on station resources is 32-year-old Wu Fei, noted as China’s youngest astronaut on the mission.
Official response and media coverage
State bodies have framed the episode as a procedural success. The China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) said Shenzhou-22 will be launched “at an appropriate time.” State broadcaster CCTV provided live, minute-by-minute coverage of Shenzhou-21’s descent, while state news agency Xinhua described the handover as “the first successful implementation of an alternative return procedure in the country's space station program history,” and said the departing crew set a new national record for the longest in-orbit stay by Chinese astronauts.
What options are available
Experts say two broad options exist to resolve the situation. Either specialists attempt an in-orbit repair of the damaged Shenzhou-20 capsule, or engineers undock it and perform a controlled deorbit — likely to burn up over the Pacific Ocean — to free a docking port for future arrivals. Keeping at least one free port is essential to maintain access for newly arriving crews.
The Chinese response may draw on precedent from Russia’s Soyuz programme. In December 2022 a micrometeoroid punctured the radiator on Soyuz MS-22, and Russian managers launched Soyuz MS-23 to replace the slightly damaged vehicle and return the crew safely. Russian experts say Chinese engineers have likely studied those “non-standard situations” when planning their response.
Expert view and next steps
Russian space specialist Igor Marinin has suggested that if Shenzhou-20’s damage is judged significant, deorbiting the capsule could be the simplest solution. CMSA’s statement that Shenzhou-22 will be launched “at an appropriate time” leaves open the possibility of accelerating the next mission — originally planned for April — to restore a ready return vehicle at Tiangong.
Reporting by Eduardo Baptista and Maxim Shemetov in Beijing; Editing by Alison Williams.