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Shenzhou 8

Shenzhou 8 was the uncrewed spacecraft used for China's first orbital rendezvous and docking mission. Launched on 31 October 2011 UTC, it completed two automatic dockings with the Tiangong-1 laboratory, validating the rendezvous, docking, separation, and upgraded spacecraft systems later used by crewed flights, and returned on 17 November 2011.

Identity

Aliases
Shenzhou VIIIShenzhou-8 docking-test spaceship
Name
Shenzhou 8
Slug
shenzhou-8
Status
retired

Details

Description
Shenzhou 8 was the uncrewed spacecraft used for China's first orbital rendezvous and docking mission. Launched on 31 October 2011 UTC, it completed two automatic dockings with the Tiangong-1 laboratory, validating the rendezvous, docking, separation, and upgraded spacecraft systems later used by crewed flights, and returned on 17 November 2011.
Manufacturer Id
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Operator Id
vh75p4zze128x61zjc1e3s19ys7nhm32
Vehicle Family Id
nd7r8fq3nfd990gndxx4kdn6d985kw46

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Assets & Meta

Creation Time
7/14/2026, 4:46:32 PM
Updated Time
7/14/2026, 4:46:32 PM

Other

First Flight Date
2011-10-31
Last Flight Date
2011-11-17