Shenzhou 20
9th crewed mission to Tiangong Space Station (TSS). Commander Chen Dong flew for the third time, joined by first-time flyers Chen Zhongrui and Wang Jie from China's third astronaut cohort; Chen Dong accumulated 418 days in space across his three missions during this stay - a new Chinese cumulative record.
Debris had cracked the outer window pane of the Shenzhou 20 return capsule at some point during the mission, a defect discovered only during handover inspections when the Shenzhou 21 crew arrived in October 2025. With the spacecraft judged unfit for crewed re-entry, the crew returned to Earth on 14 November 2025 aboard Shenzhou 21's capsule after a 204-day mission.
LIFTOFF
APR 24 2025launched fromSLS-1Jiuquan
aboardLong March 2F/G2F-Y20intoLEO
Payload
Shenzhou 20
Crewed spaceflight
Crew · 3
- 01Chen DongfromChina
- 02Chen ZhongruifromChina
- 03Wang JiefromChina
