China's youngest-ever crew of astronauts heads to space station

China's youngest-ever crew of astronauts, known as taikonauts, have launched to the country's space station. The three-person crew, led by former air force pilot Tang Hongbo, will spend six months on the space station. Tang's return to space sets a new record for the shortest interval between spaceflight missions by taikonauts, suggesting a faster rotation of astronauts in the future. China has already begun selecting candidates for its fourth batch of astronauts, including applicants from Hong Kong and Macau for the first time.

from Science News - Times of India https://ift.tt/juDCsHX