Timeline of the Shenzhou 5 Flight by Chen Lan

(All time are Beijing Time and in 24-hour format)

• 1:00, Oct 15: Jiuquan technicians began launch preparation

• 2:00, Oct 15: Yang Liwei got up and took final medical check. His body temperature is 36.7°C and blood pressure is 110/70mmHg.

• 2:30, Oct 15: Accompanied by the backup crew Zhai Zhigang and Nie Haisheng, Yang Liwei went to the canteen downstairs for breakfast. Yang dropped a little wine into water in his cup. The three cheered, without a single word.

• 3:00, Oct 15: Yang Liwei, Zhai Zhigang and Nie Haisheng signed at back of doors of their apartment.

• Later than 3:00, Oct 15: Yang Liwei began to wear the spacesuit and doing necessary suit testing.

• 5:20, Oct 15: Weather report: temperature –2°C, ground wind speed 1m/s, high altitude wind speed 47-52m/s.

• 5:28, Oct 15: Taikonaut departure ceremony. President Hu Jintao made a speech.

• 5:40, Oct 15: Accompanied by 5 motorcycles, the van carrying Yang Liwei departed for the launch pad.

• 5:58. Oct 15: Arrival at the launch pad.

• 6:15, Oct 15: Yang Liwei ingresses the Shenzhou 5 spacecraft.

• 6:25, Oct 15: Yang Liwei signed on the cabin status checkout sheet. He then started a procedure to connect headset and biological signal cables, oxygen and gas hoses, and switch on the ventilator etc.

• 6:30, Oct 15: Yang Liwei reported “Beijing, I’m Shenzhou 5. I find your voice is good”. It means that the voice communication system worked well.

• 8:00, Oct 15: Yang Liwei put on the helmet and the microphone

• 8:10, Oct 15: Technicians started pressurization of tanks on the CZ-2F. It is to guarantee normal work of engines.

• 8:20, Oct 15: Three platforms surrounding the launch vehicle rotated away.

• 8:30, Oct 15: Yang Liwei adjusted the seat belt.

• 8:45, Oct 15: Automatic ignition procedure started.

• 8:45, Oct 15: Li Jinai, the chief commander of the manned space program, voiced Yang Liwei. Yang said “see you tomorrow”.

• 8:55, Oct 15: Yang Liwei closed the visor on his helmet.

• 8:59:20, Oct 15: The last cable connecter jettisoned from the launcher.

• 8:59:50, Oct 15: Yang Liwei’s pulse rate is 73 beats per minute

• 8:59:52, Oct 15: Yang Liwei saluted towards the camera.

• 9:00, Oct 15: Shenzhou 5 manned spacecraft blasted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center

• 9:00:12, Oct 15: China’s Xinhua News Agency released the first Shenzhou 5 launch news flash.

• 9:00:45, Oct 15: APF released the first news flash. It was the first international news agency to do so.

• Around 9:01, Oct 15: video signals was interfered. It raised concerns in the control room.

• 9:02:03, Oct 15: The escape tower was separated

• 9:02:23, Oct 15: Four strap-on boosters were jettisoned

• 9:02:44, Oct 15: The first stage was jettisoned

• 9:03:28, Oct 15: The shroud was jettisoned. Yang Liwei saw first sunshine of the day.

• 9:07:40, Oct 15: The second stage engine shutdown. Yang Liwei felt weightless immediately.

• 9:09:47, Oct 15: The spacecraft was separated from the launcher. Shenzhou 5 entered orbit.

• 9:12, Oct 15: Solar panels on the propulsion module were deployed.

• 9:14, Oct 15: Solar panels on the orbital module were deployed.

• 9:14, Oct 15: Yang Liwei talks to the medical team. He said “I fell good”.

• 9:30, Oct 15: China’s CCTV broadcasts the launch video footage.

• 9:30, Oct 15: The Yuan Wang 2 tracking ship at south Pacific captured the spacecraft. Yang Liwei’s video appeared on the screen in Beijing one minute later.

• 9:32, Oct 15: Data was injected into the spacecraft by the Beijing Control Center. Flight program was updated.

• 9:34, Oct 15: Three rescue ships, Beihai 102, Dekun and Deyi, sail back.

• 9:35, Oct 15: Yang Liwei wrote down at back of his flight handbook that “For peace and progress of the human race, the Chinese have come to the space”

• 9:42, Oct 15: Li Jinai announced that Shenzhou 5 launch is successful. President Hu Jingtao made speech.

• 9:46, Oct 15: Yang Liwei reported again “I fell good”.

• 10:00, Oct 15: NASA administrator Sean O'Keefe issued a written congratulation message to China.

• About 10:00, Oct 15: Yang Liwei opened visor of his helmet after the ground reported normal status of the cabin environment..

• 10:31, Oct 15: Yang Liwei took off gloves and released the seat belt according to ground instructions. At this moment the spacecraft was within tracking rang of the Kashi tracking station.

• 10:33, Oct 15: Tracking ships completed launch tracking

• About 10:40, Oct 15: Yang Liwei changed his attitude from lay position to sitting position. He began to observe the earth from porthole.

• 11:08, Oct 15: Yang Liwei began lunch

• 12:00, Oct 15: The backup crew member Zhai Zhigang and Nie Haisheng flew back to Beijing.

• 11:12, Oct 15: Yang Liwei entered first rest session in space. He fixed himself using only the seat belt at his foot.

• 11:57, Oct 15: Matija Perne of Slovenia firstly observed the Shenzhou 5(upper stage).

• 12:41, Oct 15: Itar-Tass reported that RSA, the Russia Space Agency, congratulated China for its first manned launch.

• 14:15, Oct 15: Yang Liwei completed the rest session.

• 14:30, Oct 15: Yang Liwei reported his medical status and status of the spacecraft to the ground.

• 11:57, Oct 15: Stephen Irons of New Zealand observed the Shenzhou 5(upper stage).

• 15:52, Oct 15: The Beijing Control Center queried Yang Liwei for his and the spacecraft’s status. Yang reported smooth working of the spaceship.

• 15:52, Oct 15: Prepare to activate the maneuver procedure.

• 15:54, Oct 15: The maneuver procedure was activated. Yuan Wang 2 tracking ship at Pacific Ocean sent post-maneuver tracking data back to Beijing.

• 15:58 Oct 15: Data shows that the maneuver was successful. At this moment, communication with Yang Liwei and his spaceship was unavailable due to its orbital position.

• 16:00, Oct 10: Yang Liwei reported again that everything is normal. His pulse rate is about 60 beats per minute.

• 16:48, Oct 15: Yuan Wang 4 re-captured the spacecraft.

• About 17:00, Oct: USSTRCOM issued first set of orbital element of the Shenzhou 5 launch.

• 17:03, Oct 15: Yang Liwei reported his body temperature of 37°C, blood pressure of 69/110, pulse rate 68. He told the ground “I saw the beautiful earth”.

• 17:30, Oct 15: Cao Gangchuan, the Defense Minister talked with Yang Liwei from the Beijing Control Center.

• About 18:00 Oct 15: Will Marchant, Monroe Harden and Don Gardner observed Shenzhou 5(upper stage) from Washington DC and Maryland when Shenzhou 5 was about to complete its 6th orbit. More observers in Australia and United States observed it during the 7th and 8th orbit. The maximum visible time period is about 2.5 minute.

• 18:38 Oct 15: Yang Liwei displayed the UN and Chinese flags.

• 18:40 Oct 15: Yang Liwei orally greeted world people, colleagues in space, Chinese people in mainland, Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan, and overseas Chinese people.

• 19:58 Oct 15: Yang Liwei talked with his family members.

• 23:08 Oct 15: Yang Liwei began the second rest session while the spaceship in its 10th orbit.

• 23:27 Oct 15: The Yuan Wang 4 ship captured Shenzhou 5. The control center has no voice communication with the taikonaut during the 8-minute tracking period.

• 1:00 Oct 16: U.S. astronaut Ed Lu, an ethnic Chinese, and Russian cosmonaut Yuri Malenchenko greeted Yang Liwei. Ed Lu spoke in Chinese “Welcome to space" and "Have a safe journey and I wish you success”.

• 1:18, Oct 16: Yang Liwei finished the second rest

• 2:52, Oct 16: Yang Liwei reported fell good. The shenzhou 5 was in the 13th orbit.

• 3:10, Oct 16: Spacesuit checkout by Yang Liwei

• 3:59, Oct 16: The orbital module depressurized.

• 4:34, Oct 16: The Shenzhou 5 spacecraft flew over Chinese territory for the 13th time. Yang Liwei began preparation for landing.

• 4:31, Oct 16: Yang Liwei reported good health conditions.

• 5:04, Oct 16: The Yuan Wang 3 tracking ship captured the spacecraft and sent the maneuver and retrofire command sequence to the ship.

• 5:30, Oct 16: Dashuli optical tracking station in Jiuquan began tracking and successfully observed separation of the propulsion module later.

• 5:35, Oct 16: The spacecraft performed first reentry attitude adjustment that rotated the craft 90 degree to a side-forward attitude.

• 5:36, Oct 16: The orbital module separated. It will continue to work in orbit for 6 months.

• 5:38, Oct 16: Second reentry attitude adjustment. The vehicle rotated another 90 degree to a bottom-forward attitude. Retrofire.

• 5:58, Oct 16: The propulsion module separated.

• 6:04, Oct 16: Shenzhou 5 entered radio blackout.

• 6:07, Oct 16: The “Recover 1” ground radar station, equipped with multi-target phased array radar, captured the Shenzhou 5 reentry module. At the same time, the pilot on helicopter 743 found the descending capsule, a fireball, by naked eye. Five helicopters and 14 ground vehicles were approaching the capsule.

• 6:12, Oct 16: A large sound was heard. The parachute compartment cover jettisoned.

• 6:18, Oct 16: Yang Liwei reported good health conditions. The main parachute had been deployed.

• 6:23, Oct 16: The Shenzhou reentry capsule landed at Siziwangqi. The helicopter 743 captured landing video for the first time in Shenzhou history. The helicopter landed about 200m away from the capsule 30 seconds after the landing. The hatch door was opened in next a few minutes. It is estimated that the landing position is only 4.8km away from the theoretical landing point.

• 6:28, Oct 16: The ground team was 7.5km away from the capsule.

• 6:31, Oct 16: Premier Wen Jiabao talked to Yang Liwei and congratulated his safe return.

• 6:36, Oct 16: The ground rescue team reached the capsule.

• 6:43, Oct 16: Yang Liwei egresses the capsule by own and was welcomed by the crowd. He was asked to sit in a special chair and later was moved by the rescue team to the medical vehicle about 10m from the capsule for examinations.

• 6:54, Oct 16: Li Jinai announced that the manned flight was successful. Premier Wen Jiabao congratulated the achievement.

• 7:29, Oct 16: Jiang Zemin called Li Jinai for congratulations.

• 7:35, Oct 16: Yang Liwei walked out from the medical vehicle and welcomed by the crowd, again.

• 7:40, Oct 16: Yang Liwei left the landing site by the helicopter 742 to a military base to transfer to a plane to Beijing.

• 8:30, Oct 16: The Boeing 737 with Yang Liwei onboard took off. Yang Liwei accepted the first media interview by CCTV (Chinese Central Television) during the flight.

• 9:52, Oct 16: Yang Liwei arrived in Xijiao Airport, Beijing. Cao gangcuan (the Defence Minister), Li Jinai and other officials, as well as his family members welcomed Yang at the airport.

• 10:40, Oct 16: Yang Liwei returned to the Beijing “Aerospace City” near Tangjialing where both the control center and his home are located.

HOME | EMAIL