After detaching from the return vehicle, the crew’s landing module descended slowly on a red-and-white parachute at Dongfeng, which is located in China’s northern Inner Mongolia province on the border of the Gobi Desert. Strong gusts and poor visibility had caused a one-day delay in their return. Sandstorms are common in the area at this time of year.
After being launched to the Tiangong space station in October, the astronauts Cai Xuzhe, Song Lingdong, and Wang Haoze handed over control of the station on Tuesday to the newly arriving crew who took their place.
Along with new technology for the space station, the Shenzhou 20 carrying the new crew also included equipment for microgravity physics and space life sciences.
