JAKARTA - The Shenzhou XXIII crew carried out various medical and technological experiments on the Tiangong space station. The research includes important issues in long-term space flight, ranging from blood flow, brain function, muscle work, to how the body adapts during long stays in space.
China Daily, quoted Thursday, July 2, reported that the Shenzhou XXIII crew had carried out a number of scientific tasks since arriving at Tiangong more than a month ago. The mission was manned by Zhu Yangzhu, Zhang Zhiyuan, and Lai Ka-ying.
For space medical experiments, astronauts help each other perform ultrasound examinations on several parts of the body, including the neck, wrist, and abdomen. The data is used to study the character of blood vessels, blood flow, and changes in certain muscle groups.
Zhu's team also used the Xiaohang robot for a touch interaction test. The results will be used to refine the robot motion algorithm that will work in orbit.
Other experiments target the brain. Astronauts use an electroencephalogram or EEG device, an instrument for recording electrical brain activity, to study visual-motor processing and body responses to lighting conditions.
They also wear near-infrared brain function imaging devices. Data from these tools are used to study the impact of long-term spaceflight on brain function networks, including how the brain adapts to changes in the space environment.
In the field of microgravity physics, the crew installed and repaired a number of world-class experimental devices. Microgravity is a condition when the gravitational force is very small, as experienced by astronauts on the space station.
The Shenzhou XXIII crew also wore a diagnostic device that combines traditional Chinese medicine methods. The device is used to collect physiological data to help monitor astronaut health in long-term missions.
On the sidelines of scientific duties, the astronauts tried new dishes at Tiangong. They used a hot air oven to make roasted pumpkin, a dish that the crew had never tried before.
In 2025, astronauts Shenzhou XX and Shenzhou XXI showed how to use a special oven to roast chicken wings and steaks. The action was called the first experience of roasting food in space that was shown to the public.
According to Liu Weibo, an engineer at the Astronaut Center of China, the space oven can suck in cooking fumes, hold food scraps in the oven space, keep food in place, and heat it evenly.
The United States was the first to send an oven to the International Space Station in 2019 for an experiment to bake a cake in a microgravity environment. However, the cake was not eaten and was sent back to Earth for research.
The Shenzhou XXIII crew launched on May 24 and arrived at the Chinese space station a day later. This mission is China's 17th manned space flight and its 11th manned mission to Tiangong.
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