Wentian, the first lab module of the Tiangong station, was launched on July 24 by a Long March 5B heavy-lift rocket from the Wenchang center.
The 23-ton vehicle is the largest and heaviest China has ever deployed in orbit and consists of three major parts — a crew working compartment, an airlock cabin and an unpressurized service module.
Tiangong now has four parts — the Tianhe core module, the Wentian lab, the Tianzhou 4 cargo ship and the Shenzhou XIV spacecraft. It is currently manned by three astronauts who arrived in early June.