Chinese astronauts set a new record by completing a 9-hour spacewalk.

Two Chinese astronauts have achieved the longest spacewalk in history, dedicating more than nine hours to activities outside the Tiangong space station. Cai Xuzhe and Song Lingdong carried out this monumental task on December 17, according to reports from the China Manned Space Engineering Office (CMSEO).

With a total time of 9 hours and 6 minutes, this spacewalk surpasses the previous record of 8 hours and 56 minutes, set in 2001 by NASA astronauts James Voss and Susan Helms. The CMSEO reported that at 21:57 on December 17, 2024, Beijing time, the crew members of Shenzhou 19, Cai Xuzhe and Song Lingdong, along with Wang Haoze, conducted their activities using the space station's robotic arm and with the support of ground control.

During the spacewalk, they performed several tasks, such as installing debris protection devices and inspecting and maintaining extravehicular equipment. After completing their mission, the astronauts safely returned to the Wentian experimental module.

The astronauts are part of the Shenzhou 19 mission, launched in October 2024, marking their eighth mission to the Chinese space station. They are scheduled to stay in space for approximately six months before returning in 2025. During their stay, they will continue working on the Tiangong station, which has a modular design, with modules being added as its capabilities expand. Currently, in addition to the central module Tianhe, which was launched in 2021, there are two laboratory modules, Wentian and Mengtian, launched in 2022.

It is noteworthy that China is not part of the International Space Station (ISS), which is a collaborative effort among countries such as the United States, Russia, and several European and Asian countries. The ISS is expected to be decommissioned in 2030, and NASA plans to replace it with commercial space stations. As this occurs, it is possible that China's space station could become the leading research hub in low Earth orbit. NASA recently presented its plan to maintain a human presence in space following the end of the ISS, suggesting the intention to have a variety of providers to ensure continuous access to low Earth orbit.