Astronauts watch live news feed

The two astronauts aboard the Tiangong II space laboratory have become the first to watch a live broadcast of the nightly news on China Cental Television in space.

Jing Haipeng and Chen Dong joined millions on Earth in tuning into the show on Friday night.

Wu Dawei, an engineer with the Astronaut Center of the lab, Jing can be seen wearing black headgear, which scientists said was for a mental test, to find out how the brain works in space.

Yang said the astronauts have fully adapted to life in Tiangong II and follow the same work and rest schedule as their colleagues on Earth.

China, said the show is part of the psychological support for the astronauts. Ground control will continue to transmit the program live every day as well as other content, including some of Jing and Chen’s personal favorites.

Yang Liwei, deputy director of the China Manned Space Engineering Office and a former astronaut, said Jing and Chen will stay in the space lab for 30 days.

However, when construction of China’s space station is complete, the plan is to use it to house astronauts for up to six months.

Under these circumstances, he said, it is important that astronauts know what is happening on Earth.

In images transmitted from