China's Shenzhou-14 Astronauts Carry Out Spacewalk

Two astronauts on board China's Tiangong space station successfully completed a six-hour spacewalk Friday, the national human spaceflight agency said, reports AFP.

Astronauts Chen Dong and Liu Yang returned to their cabin module in the early hours of Friday, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) said, declaring the first spacewalk of the six-month Shenzhou-14 mission a "complete success".

China's heavily promoted space programme has already seen the nation land a rover on Mars and send probes to the Moon.

State media images showed the pair opening the hatch of the module and using a robotic arm to manoeuvre equipment with the rotating earth in the background.

"Hello, everyone. I'm out of the module. I'm feeling good," Chen, a former military pilot, said in a video.

The pair completed a series of tasks including installing external parts to the module and testing its functions, while the remaining astronaut Cai Xuzhe coordinated from inside the cabin, official news agency Xinhua reported.

China launched the Shenzhou-14 spacecraft on June 5, sending the three astronauts to complete the construction of Tiangong.