Zhang Lu (taikonaut)
Chinese taikonaut (born 1976)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Zhang Lu (Chinese: 张陆; born November 1976) is a Chinese astronaut in the Shenzhou program.[1] He enlisted in the People's Liberation Army (PLA) in August 1999, and joined the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in April 1999.
.jpg)
Zhang Lu | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
张陆 | |||||||
Zhang in November 2022 | |||||||
| Born | November 1976 (age 49) Hanshou County, Hunan, China | ||||||
| Education | PLA Air Force Aviation University | ||||||
| Space career | |||||||
| PLAAC astronaut | |||||||
Previous occupation | Fighter pilot, People's Liberation Army Air Force | ||||||
| Status | Active | ||||||
| Rank | Senior colonel, People's Liberation Army Strategic Support Force | ||||||
Time in space | 396 days, 3 hours and 52 minutes | ||||||
| Selection | Chinese Group 2 (2010) | ||||||
Total EVAs | 7 | ||||||
Total EVA time | 50 hours, 48 minutes | ||||||
| Missions | Shenzhou 15 Shenzhou 21/22 | ||||||
| Children | 1 | ||||||
| Chinese name | |||||||
| Simplified Chinese | 张陆 | ||||||
| Traditional Chinese | 張陸 | ||||||
| |||||||
Zhang served as system operator on the 185-day Shenzhou 15 mission to the Tiangong space station in 2022-2023, and is currently serving as the commander of the Shenzhou 21 mission, which launched in October 2025.[2] With 7 spacewalks for a total time of 47 hours 47 minutes, he is the current Chinese record holder for most spacewalks and most time spent outside a spacecraft, and ranks 19th globally.
Biography
Zhang was born into a fisherman's family in Hanshou County, Hunan province, China, in November 1976. He attended Chengguan No. 4 Primary School (城关四小), Zhanlepin Middle School (詹乐贫中学) and Hanshou County No. 1 High School (汉寿一中).[3] In 1981, at the age of 5, his family relocated to downtown Hanshou County, where they engaged in freshwater aquaculture.[4] Due to hard work and thrift, his family became a 10,000-Yuan-Household (万元户) in the early days of the reform and opening up.[4] In his early teens, he developed taste for singing.[5]
After graduating from the current PLA Air Force Aviation University in 2000, he became a fighter pilot in the People's Liberation Army Air Force, and was selected to be an astronaut in May 2010.
Personal life
Zhang married in 2003 and has a daughter.[6]