China’s fast-moving space program has entered another unusual chapter, as the uncrewed Shenzhou 22 spacecraft arrives at the Tiangong space station to serve as a return vehicle for three astronauts who had briefly been left without an emergency escape option. The launch, carried out on Nov. 24 by a Long March 2F/G rocket, followed a chain of events that began when the Shenzhou 20 return capsule was found to have a cracked window, reportedly caused by space debris. The Shenzhou 20 astronauts’ planned departure was delayed due to the spacecraft’s failure to meet safety standards for bringing a crew home, resulting in a juggle of vehicles around Tiangong.
The Shenzhou 21 astronauts, who arrived at the station earlier this month, saw their own spacecraft reassigned to bring the Shenzhou 20 crew back to Earth earlier this month. As a result, the trio spent about 10 days without a dedicated ride home. Chinese agencies described the situation as temporary but acknowledged that the crew would regain full contingency capability only once Shenzhou 22 docked with the outpost.
Shenzhou 22 will remain attached to Tiangong until 2026, when it is scheduled to ferry the current mission home. By that time, the station is expected to receive the Shenzhou 23 crew, whose arrival requires that the damaged Shenzhou 20 capsule first be undocked. According to officials, the compromised vehicle will conduct experiments in orbit for a while before returning to Earth for analysis.
The episode adds to recent international discussions about how human spaceflight programs handle unexpected equipment failures. Boeing’s Starliner also faced complications following its 2024 crewed flight to the International Space Station, leading NASA to return the vehicle without astronauts. During that period, astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore remained on the ISS for several months before returning on a separate spacecraft. NASA said at the time that a functional lifeboat was always present, but the prolonged mission drew public attention.
The overlapping cases have fueled broader debate—some spaceflight commentators have called it a prompt for developing a shared “space rescue” framework. Advocates argue that as more nations operate in low Earth orbit, contingency planning may become increasingly important.
