Shenzhou XVI crew safely lands on Earth after five-month mission

Jing's team entered the Tiangong station on May 30. Their journey was China's 11th manned spaceflight and the fifth crewed mission to the Tiangong space station.

The journey was the debut flight of China's third generation of astronauts, and the first time a Chinese civilian has traveled into space.

Jing and Zhu are members of the People's Liberation Army's Astronaut Division, while Gui is a doctoral supervisor at the Department of Spacecraft and Launch Vehicle Technology of Beihang University's School of Astronautics in Beijing.

Moreover, the Shenzhou XVI mission had become Jing's fourth spaceflight, making him China's most experienced astronaut.

In the next six months, the Tiangong station will be manned by the Shenzhou XVII trio — mission commander Senior Colonel Tang Hongbo, Lieutenant Colonel Tang Shengjie and Lieutenant Colonel Jiang Xinlin — who arrived at the colossal flying outpost on Thursday evening.

Before setting out on their return trip, Jing's team handed over their work to the new crew and sorted and transferred materials between the station and their spaceship.

They left the Tiangong station at 8:37 pm Monday. After some orbital maneuvers, their spaceship re-entered the atmosphere on Tuesday morning.