China’s Shenzhou-13 spacecraft docks for six-month mission

From left, Chinese astronauts Zhai Zhigang, Wang Yaping, and Ye Guangfu, wave before leaving for the Shenzhou-13 crewed space mission at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China (Chinatopix/AP)

China’s Shenzhou-13 spacecraft carrying three Chinese astronauts docked at its space station on Saturday, kicking off a record-setting six-month stay as the country moves toward completing the new orbiting outpost.

The spacecraft was launched by a Long March-2F rocket at 12.23am local time on Saturday and docked with the Tianhe core module of the Tiangong space station some six and a half hours later.