Beijing. Three Chinese astronauts returned safely to Earth on Friday using a new spacecraft brought in by a replacement crew after being temporarily stranded on their country’s space station. According to China’s space agency, the Shenzhou-20 spacecraft carrying the astronauts was damaged after being hit by space debris.

They had been orbiting the Tiangong space station for six months and were initially scheduled to return on November 5, four days after the new crew arrived at the station. However, their mission was delayed by more than a week after a small crack appeared in the window of the Shenzhou-20 return capsule as they were preparing to return. It is believed that the high-speed space wreckage was caused by cracks in the windows.

Millions of pieces of debris generated by launches and space collisions continue to orbit the Earth faster than bullets. Safety precautions are considered very important because such particles pose a risk to satellites, space stations and astronauts working in outer space.

According to China’s Manned Space Engineering Office, Chen Dong, Chen Zhongrui and Wang Jie returned safely to Earth on the Shenzhou-21 spacecraft. Shenzhou-20 will remain in the room.

Earlier this week, the Tiangong station said its crew were “in good health, busy with routine work and carrying out normal lifestyle”.

China has made steady progress since it launched manned space flights in 2003. After setting up its own space station, the country has now set an ambitious goal of landing humans on the moon by 2030.

In addition, four rats were sent into space on the last Shenzhou-21 mission, which aims to study the effects of weightlessness and closed environments on animals.