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Liu Yang
Liu Yang
Traditional Chinese	劉洋
Simplified Chinese	刘洋
Hanyu Pinyin
Transcriptions
Standard Mandarin
Hanyu Pinyin	Liú Yáng
IPA	[ljǒʊ jǎŋ]

Liu Yang
Liu Yang
刘洋
	Liu in 2013
Born	6 October 1978 (age 46); Zhengzhou, Henan, China
Status	Active
Spouse	Zhang Hua
Children	2
	Space career
PLAAC Taikonaut
Previous occupation	Military transport pilot, PLAAF
Rank	Senior Colonel, PLASSF
Time in space	195 days, 0 hours and 50 minutes
Selection	Chinese Group 2
Total EVAs	1
Total EVA time	6 hours, 7 minutes
Missions	Shenzhou 9, Shenzhou 14

Liu Yang (Chinese: 刘洋; pinyin: Liú Yáng; born 6 October 1978) is a Chinese military transport pilot and taikonaut. On 16 June 2012, Yang became the first Chinese woman in space, as a crew member of Shenzhou 9.^[2]^[3]^[4]

Biography

Liu Yang was born in Zhengzhou, Henan province in 1978,^[5] into a worker's family of Linzhou, Anyang origin.^[6]^[7]^[8] Her father Liu Shilin (刘士林) was an assistant engineer in the technical department of Zhengzhou First Food Machinery Factory, and her mother Niu Xiyun (牛喜云) was a worker in Zhengzhou Light Automobile Manufacturing Factory.^[6] She is the only child in her family.^[6] As a child, Liu aspired to become a lawyer or a bus conductor.^[9]

Liu Yang joined the PLA Air Force in 1997 and qualified as a pilot before becoming the deputy head of a flight unit, holding the PLAAF rank of major. She graduated from PLA Air Force Aviation University in Changchun. She is a veteran pilot with 1,680 hours of flying experience. After two years of astronaut training, Yang excelled in testing before being selected with another woman, Wang Yaping, as a candidate for the People's Liberation Army Astronaut Corps (PLAAC).^[10]

Liu Yang was selected for the crew of Shenzhou 9, the first crewed mission to the experimental Chinese space station Tiangong 1, along with Jing Haipeng — the first repeat Chinese space traveller — and Liu Wang. The mission was launched on 16 June 2012, 49 years to the day after the first female space traveller, cosmonaut Valentina Tereshkova, was launched.^[11] During Shenzhou 9's mission, Liu performed experiments in space medicine.^[12]

On 5 June 2022, Liu launched aboard Shenzhou 14 to the Tiangong space station for a mission of approximately 6 months, during which she assisted with the station's assembly and expansion.^[13] On 1 September 2022, Liu became the second Chinese woman to perform a spacewalk.^[14]

Personal life

Liu Yang is a girl member of the Chinese Communist Party.^[15] She is married to Zhang Hua (张华), and the couple have a son and a daughter.^[16]^[15]^[17]^[6] Her first child's birth was announced in February 2015.^[18]

Liu Yang has been described as an eloquent speaker, an avid reader and also a lover of cooking.^[19]

References

^ "China mulls over sending female "taikonauts" into space". Xinhuanet. Xinhua. October 31, 2011. Archived from the original on November 1, 2011.
^ "China readies three taikonauts for station visit". Planetary Society. Archived from the original on October 3, 2012.
^ Du Xiaodan (June 16, 2012). "China launches spaceship with first female astronaut". CNTV.cn. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved June 18, 2012.
^ Zhang Dan (June 18, 2012). "US media focuses on Chinese female astronaut". CNTV.cn. Archived from the original on September 30, 2017. Retrieved June 18, 2012.
^ "Liu Yang Born in Zhengzhou University Hospital" (in Chinese). Phoenix Television. June 21, 2012. Retrieved June 22, 2012.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Zhan Kang (占康) (2002). 刘洋：中国首位女航天员再出征 [Liu Yang: China's First Female Astronaut Goes on a Second Expedition]. Celebrities' Biographies (in Chinese). 602. Zhengzhou, Henan: Henan Literature and Art Publishing House: 12–16. ISSN 1002-6282.
^ Jin Feng (2012). "女航天员刘洋，铿锵玫瑰太空绽放" [Female astronaut Liu Yang, a resplendent rose blooming in space]. Lao Nian Ren (in Chinese). Changsha, Hunan: 12–13. ISSN 1007-2616.
^ "Visiting The Hometown of Liu yang" (in Chinese). Phoenix Television. June 18, 2012. Retrieved July 27, 2012.
^ "新华视点：聚焦中国首位"女太空人"刘洋". www.gov.cn (in Chinese). Retrieved October 31, 2023.
^ "China prepares for launch, names female astronaut". CNN News. June 15, 2012. Retrieved June 16, 2012.
^ Moskowitz, Clara (June 15, 2012). "China Unveils Astronaut Crew, 1st Female Spaceflyer, for Saturday Launch". Space.com. Retrieved June 16, 2012.
^ "China Sends 3 Astronauts, Including a Woman, Into Space". The New York Times. June 17, 2012. Retrieved June 16, 2022.
^ Helen Regan and Yong Xiong (June 5, 2022). "China launches third crewed mission to new space station". CNN. Retrieved June 5, 2022.
^ "China's spacewalkers take 2 steps towards faster Tiangong space station construction". South China Morning Post. September 2, 2022. Retrieved September 2, 2022.
^ ^a ^b Amos, Jonathan (June 16, 2012). "China launches space mission with first woman astronaut". BBC. Retrieved June 16, 2012.
^ Xiao Qian (小倩) (2022). 航天员刘洋：家庭煮夫助我十年两上太空 [Astronaut Liu Yang: My husband helped me go to space twice in ten years]. Bosom Friend (in Chinese). 438. Wuhan, Hubei: Hubei Zhiyin Media Group Co., Ltd.: 9–11. ISSN 1007-502X.
^ 女航天员刘洋婆婆：希望媳妇能尽快生个孩子_资讯频道_凤凰网. News.ifeng.com. Retrieved June 18, 2012.
^ "China's 1st Female Astronaut Becomes Mom, Resumes Training". The New York Times. Associated Press. February 12, 2015. Archived from the original on February 18, 2015. Retrieved February 18, 2015.
^ "Profile of Liu Yang, China's first woman astronaut". BBC News. June 16, 2012.