The Shenzhou-12 manned spacecraft successfully separated from China’s Tianhe space station core module at 8:56 am on Thursday with astronauts Nie Haisheng, Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo on board, according to the China Manned Space Engineering Office.

The crewed spacecraft Shenzhou-12, atop a Long March-2F carrier rocket, is launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China's Gobi Desert, June 17, 2021. (Photo: Xinhua)

With the help of technicians on the ground, the mission crew completed a series of tasks before the separation, including transmitting experimental data back to Earth and sorting and transfer-ring goods to remain in orbit.

The Shenzhou-12 crew spent 90 days in the Tianhe module, the astronauts’ “home in space,” setting a new record for a Chinese manned space mission in a single flight.

The Shenzhou-12 spacecraft will return to earth on Friday.

(Compiled by Lyu Xingke)