Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, northwest China - Recent (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Aerial shot of rocket-spaceship combination, vertical assembly test building
2. Aerial shots of rocket-spaceship combination being transferred to launch tower
3. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) He Yu, chief commander, manned spacecraft, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (starting with shot 2/ending with shot 4):
"We have substantially enhanced the Shenzhou spacecraft's return payload transport capability. The previous functional specification was 50 kilograms. Now it exceeds 100 kilograms, and the payload volume is three times larger than before."

FILE: China - Date unknown (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland）
4. Spaceship
5. Various of launch tower, crane

Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, northwest China - May 16, 2026 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
6. Aerial shot of rocket-spaceship combination

Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, northwest China - Recent (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
7. SOUNDBITE (Chinese) He Yu, chief commander, manned spacecraft, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (starting with shot 6/ending with shot 8):
"The upmass and downmass capabilities of the Shenzhou spacecraft, particularly the downmass capability, had previously been a bottleneck for the space station program, restricting the development of space applications. By breaking through this bottleneck and meeting the goal of sending up whatever should go up and bringing down whatever should come down, we can better support in-orbit applications of the space station."

Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, northwest China - Recent (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
8. Various of launch tower

Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, northwest China - May 16, 2026 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
9. Various of rocket-spaceship combination

China's Shenzhou-23 mission marks the first crewed flight of a new spacecraft batch featuring a major upgrade that doubles the vehicle's cargo return payload, or downmass capacity, addressing a critical bottleneck in the nation's space station program, said the chief commander of the spaceship ahead of its launch later on Sunday.

The Shenzhou-23 is the second spacecraft of the new batch and its inaugural crewed mission. Compared to earlier spacecraft used during the initial space station construction phase, this new generation incorporates significant improvements targeting operational constraints.

"We have substantially enhanced the Shenzhou spacecraft's return payload transport capability. The previous functional specification was 50 kilograms. Now it exceeds 100 kilograms, and the payload volume is three times larger than before," said He Yu, Chief Commander for Manned Spacecraft at the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation.

The increased payload volume refers to the available space for carrying items. He explained that the improvement in downmass capability stems from two key modifications: the miniaturization upgrade of the cabin's instrumentation system and the intensive reconfiguration of interior space layout. Together, these changes freed up weight and spatial resources, enabling the Shenzhou-23 to bring more scientific experiment payloads and other items back to the Earth upon its return.

"The upmass and downmass capabilities of the Shenzhou spacecraft, particularly the downmass capability, had previously been a bottleneck for the space station program, restricting the development of space applications. By breaking through this bottleneck and meeting the goal of sending up whatever should go up and bringing down whatever should come down, we can better support in-orbit applications of the space station," He said.

The Shenzhou-23 crewed spaceship is scheduled to lift off at 23:08 Beijing time (1508 GMT) on Sunday from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced on Saturday.