The first Chinese astronaut to fly into space was Yang Liwei, and the name of his spacecraft was Shenzhou 5.

Yang Liwei is from Suizhong County, Huludao City, Liaoning Province. In 1983, Yang Liwei was admitted to the Eighth Flight Academy of the Air Force. He graduated from the Air Force Aviation University of the People's Liberation Army of China in 1987 with a bachelor's degree.

In September 1995, the Manned Space Engineering Command received approval from the Central Military Commission to select reserve astronauts from active pilots in the Air Force. In mid-April 1997, he achieved excellence in the tests of clinical medicine, aerospace physiological function indicators, and psychological quality, and became one of them. ?

In January 1998, he and 13 other outstanding air force pilots became the first generation of Chinese astronauts. Since the Astronaut Group was affiliated to the General Armament Department, it was changed to the Army at that time, and the rank of Air Force Major was changed to Army Major. In 2000, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel. He worked hard and tirelessly. ?

In July 2003, after being evaluated by the Manned Space Engineering Astronaut Selection Committee, he had the ability to independently perform space flights and was awarded the third-level astronaut qualification. At that time, he held the rank of lieutenant colonel. At 9:00 Beijing time on October 15, Yang Liwei entered space for the first time on the Shenzhou 5 spacecraft carried by the Long March 2F rocket. His pioneering work and that of technical experts made China the third country to master manned spaceflight technology.

Extended information

China is opening up a new era of space:

In 2018, China’s annual launches reached 38. From the establishment of the "Queqiao" relay satellite for communication between the earth and the moon, to the launch of Chang'e 4 for a soft landing on the back of the moon; from the continuous launch and networking of navigation satellites to build the basic Beidou-3 system, to the Sino-French Ocean Satellite and Ocean 2 B satellite, build a space-based ocean observation and monitoring system.

From the Gaofen-11 satellite for earth observation to the Hongyun Engineering Technology Verification Satellite designed to build an integrated space-ground communication network, China Aerospace has performed 2018 with stunning performance. The veritable Chinese Year in Space has received widespread attention and praise from the international community.

The Beidou system is a global satellite navigation system independently constructed and operated by China that is compatible with other satellite navigation systems in the world. It can provide high-precision, all-weather, all-day services to all types of users around the world. Highly reliable positioning service. The construction of the Beidou system has achieved breakthroughs in more than 100 key technologies in four major categories, achieving an overall jump in China's aerospace capabilities.

As the Beidou satellite navigation system moves towards the world and its industrialization becomes increasingly mature, China’s other satellite system ‘Hongyun Project’ has also started its launch time. This marks a breakthrough in the construction of China's low-orbit broadband communication satellite system, and China has also taken a substantial first step in building a space-based Internet.

Baidu Encyclopedia - Yang Liwei

People's Daily Online - China is opening up a new era of space