China has canceled the May 19 launch of the Tianzhou-2 cargo spacecraft due to technical reasons. It is not clear when the next launch attempt will be. However, the country is seeking to launch its first crewed mission to its new orbital lab later this year. The timeline for this event has not been clarified, however, officials knowledgeable on the situation have predicted that it will occur in June.
The canceled mission aimed to dock the Tianzhou-1 cargo spacecraft with the Tianhe space station core module to transfer propellants and supplies to sustain future crewed missions. Three astronauts are expected to launch on a three-month mission sometime over the summer. Photos of the event show unmasked workers gathering near the launch site. China has largely contained the Covid-19 pandemic and reported 25 new Covid-19 cases on Sunday. Most of these cases were allegedly imported.
Read More: China poised to launch Tianzhou-2 cargo ship to Tianhe space station module
