Shenzhou XIV crew return to Earth

Astronaut Chen Dong is out of the return capsule of the Shenzhou XIV manned spaceship at the Dongfeng landing site in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region, Dec 4, 2022. [PHOTO / XINHUA]

The three astronauts on the Shenzhou XIV mission returned to Earth on Sunday evening after a six-month mission that completed the in-orbit assembly of the Tiangong space station.

A reentry capsule carrying the crew – Senior Colonel Chen Dong, the mission commander, Senior Colonel Liu Yang and Senior Colonel Cai Xuzhe – touched down on Earth at the Dongfeng Landing Site in northwestern China's Gobi Desert at 8:09 pm after flying nine hours in a re-entry trajectory.

This has become the first time that Chinese astronauts have returned to Earth at night.

Astronaut Liu Yang is out of the return capsule of the Shenzhou XIV manned spaceship at the Dongfeng landing site in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region, Dec 4, 2022. [PHOTO / XINHUA]

Ground recovery personnel soon opened the hatch of the capsule and then conducted preliminary examination on the astronauts conditions.

The crew members told them that they "are feeling very good".

Astronaut Cai Xuzhe is out of the return capsule of the Shenzhou XIV manned spaceship at the Dongfeng landing site in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region, Dec 4, 2022. [PHOTO / XINHUA]

The return capsule of the Shenzhou XIV manned spaceship touches down safely at the Dongfeng landing site in North China's Inner Mongolia autonomous region, Dec 4, 2022. [PHOTO / XINHUA]