Shenzhou XVIII crew to conduct spacewalks

Shenzhou XVIII crew members on board China's space station will conduct their first extravehicular activities in the next few days, the China Manned Space Agency announced on Monday.

The astronauts, who have been in the space station for 32 days, have accomplished a rotation with the Shenzhou XVII crew, attended to the maintenance and upkeep of the space station platform, ensured the upkeep of its life and health support system, conducted inspections and tests on extravehicular activity suits, and prepared for spacewalks.

They have also engaged in system-wide pressure emergency drills, medical rescue exercises and other in-orbit training programs.

They have embarked on an array of space science experiments, and completed the second installation of material exposure experiment apparatus outside the space module, the agency said.

It said the Shenzhou XVIII crew is in good health, and the space station is operating smoothly, presenting good conditions for conducting extravehicular activities.

Xinhua