See-off ceremony held for Shenzhou-16 astronauts heading for China Space Station

A see-off ceremony for the three Shenzhou-16 astronauts set to travel to the China Space Station was held on Tuesday morning at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China.

At the command of Xu Xueqiang, commander-in-chief of China's manned space program, astronauts Jing Haipeng, Zhu Yangzhu and Gui Haichao set off at 6:44 a.m.

Beijing Time. The Shenzhou-16 spaceship is expected to be launched at 9:31 a.m. on Tuesday from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. The Shenzhou-15 crew has been working and living in-orbit for half a year and is preparing for the upcoming Shenzhou-16 trio.