Dongfeng landing site ready for Shenzhou-18 crew's return

China

Dongfeng landing site ready for Shenzhou-18 crew's return

2024-11-01 16:16 Last Updated At：22:57

The Dongfeng landing site in Inner Mongolia of north China is ready for the return of the Shenzhou-18 astronauts, according to the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center.

The last comprehensive drill was carried out at the landing site from Thursday evening to early morning on Friday, said the center.

The return capsule of the Shenzhou-18 manned spaceship, carrying three astronauts, is scheduled to touch down on Earth in the early morning on Monday.

The comprehensive drill simulated all possible scenarios and tested every piece of equipment, taking into account of various challenging conditions, the center said.

"We conducted multiple rounds of self-training and separate drills previously. Today, we held a full-scale air-ground joint search and rescue exercise, which proved that we've achieved the expected effect. As we'd carry out the search and rescue mission at night, and it is dark night now, so it's challenging to us to a certain extent. Our team has performed flights on night-vision devices before, which plus our aboard equipment and additionally installed electro-optical pod could assist us in quickly tracking the return trajectory of the spacecraft," said Wei Guo, an officer of the air search and rescue team of the Shenzhou-18 mission.

"Our joint exercise today went relatively smoothly, especially people of our various systems coordinated very well. Our air and ground teams, right upon their arrival, also delivered very normal teamwork. We have the ability and confidence to complete the search and rescue mission," said Sun Liwen, an officer at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center.

The three Shenzhou-18 astronauts, Ye Guangfu, Li Cong and Li Guangsu, were sent into space on April 25.

China launched the Shenzhou-19 crewed spaceship on Wednesday, sending another three astronauts to its orbiting space station for a six-month mission.

The Shenzhou-19 and Shenzhou-18 crews met in the Tiangong space station, and performed a new round of in-orbit crew handover.

Over 40 new movies set to boost box office in November

2024-11-01 22:00 Last Updated At：22:07

The release of more than 40 new films is set to push China's box office to a new height in November, offering movie-goers a rich mixture of visual-audio carnival.

The disaster film Cesium Fallout starring Hong Kong actors Andy Lau and Karen Mok is one among the first comers with a scheduled released date of Nov 1.

Movie fans who favor crime movies will have a wide choice among the suspense films Within, A Cover-Up and A Long Shot.

Comedy romance Her Story, to be released on Nov 22, tells a story of a single mother who finds warmth and consolation from a neighbor after moving into a new home.

Hong Kong-produced drama Love Lies, which won the Mid-Autumn Festival box office in Hong Kong, will officially land theaters across the Chinese mainland on Nov 15.

In terms of imported films, the action-packed American comedy Red One starring Dwayne Johnson and Chris Evans will be available in cinemas on Nov 8.

Moana 2, a Disney-produced fantasy animation, will meet Chinese audience in Nov 29, two days after its scheduled premiere in its U.S. home market.

For nostalgic movie fans, the 1994 French crime film Léon, which was first watched by Chinese fans in 2002 in the form of video disks, has been officially on screen in the Chinese market on Friday.

China's box office revenue this year surpassed 38 billion yuan (5.3 billion U.S. dollars) as of Tuesday, according to box office tracker Dengta Data.

Meanwhile, the Harry Potter series will continue re-screening one volume per week on each Friday, evoking generations of movie buffs' nostalgia for the fantastic wizarding world.