Shenzhou-6
Launched: 9:00 a.m., Oct. 12, 2005
Landed: 4:33 a.m., Oct. 17, 2005
China's second manned spaceflight carried astronauts Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng.
The mission aimed to master technology relating to a "multi-person and multi-day" orbital flight, as well as to carry out manned space-related scientific experiments and medical experiments.
Shenzhou-7
Launched: 9:10 p.m., Sept. 25, 2008
Landed: 5:37 p.m., Sept. 28, 2008
China carried out a historic first spacewalk by a Chinese astronaut. Zhai Zhigang, Liu Boming and Jing Haipeng were onboard.
Zhai left the cabin at 4:34 p.m. Sept. 27, about 43 hours after the craft launched, remaining outside the craft for 19 minutes and 35 seconds. China became the third country in the world to conduct extravehicular activity in space, following the Soviet Union and the United States.
Shenzhou-8
Launched: 5:58 a.m, Nov. 1, 2011
Docked with Tiangong-1 space module: 1:36 a.m., Nov. 3, 2011
Landed: 7:30 p.m., Nov. 17, 2011.
The return of the unmanned spacecraft Shenzhou-8 marked the end of the 49-day space docking mission, and it was hoped that it would pave the way for the establishing of China's own space station.
China not only made a breakthrough in space docking technology, but also validated the capability of its rocket, spacecraft and entire system, laying solid foundations for the building of a space station.
Shenzhou-9
Launched: 6:37 p.m, June 16, 2012
Docked with Tiangong-1 space module: around 2 p.m., June 18, 2012
Landed: 10:03 a.m., June 29, 2012
The return of the Shenzhou-9 spacecraft to Earth marked the end of a 13-day journey through space for three Chinese astronauts who completed China's first manned space docking.
The craft carried the first Chinese female astronaut Liu Yang.
It also marked the beginning of a new journey for China as it inched closer to its goal of building a space station.
Shenzhou-10
Launched: 5:38 p.m., June 11, 2013
Docked with Tiangong-1 space module: 1:18 p.m., June 13, 2013
Landed: 8:07 a.m., June 26, 2013
Shenzhou-10 was China's first application-oriented space flight. In its 15-day journey in space, Shenzhou-10 docked with the orbiting space lab Tiangong-1 twice, once through automatic operation and once manually.
The astronauts spent 12 days in Tiangong-1, where they conducted medical experiments, technical tests and delivered a lecture to students on Earth about basic physics principles.
Compared with the previous mission Shenzhou-9, Shenzhou-10 was not experimental but an applicable shuttle system for transporting astronauts and supplies to orbiting modules.
Shenzhou-11
Launched: 7:30 a.m., Oct. 17, 2016
Landed:1:59 p.m., Nov. 18, 2016
After its launch on Oct. 17, the spacecraft docked two days later with China's first space lab, Tiangong-2, where the two astronauts lived for 30 days.
The mission aimed to transport personnel and materials between Earth and the space lab Tiangong-2, as well as test meeting, docking and return processes. It fulfilled the longest manned mission in the country's space program to date.
The module marked the imminent end of the exploratory stage of China's manned space program, which will carry out manned space missions on a regular basis with the establishment of its own space station.
Tiangong-1
Launched: 9:16 p.m., Sept. 29, 2011
The orbiting Tiangong-1 space module docked with Shenzhou-8, Shenzhou-9 and Shenzhou-10 spacecraft and undertook a series of experiments.
Tiangong-2
Launched: 10:04 p.m., Sept. 15, 2016
Designed to enable two astronauts to live in space for up to 30 days and to receive manned and cargo spaceships, Tiangong-2's interior living quarters and life support system have been improved to allow longer astronaut stays, compared to its predecessor.
The module marked another milestone in the country's increasingly ambitious space program, which envisions a mission to Mars and its own space station.
