Astronauts send Dragon Boat Festival greetings

hree astronauts aboard the Shenzhou-10 spacecraft, which was launched into space on Tuesday, gave Dragon Boat Festival greetings to all Chinese on Wednesday. This year's festival, which falls on June 12, is the second Dragon Boat Festival to be celebrated by Chinese astronauts in space. Astronauts Nie Haisheng, Zhang Xiaoguang and Wang Yaping appeared in front of a camera in the craft's re-entry module around 1 p.m. and chatted with ground staff while waving to those watching on television. "We wish all Chinese around the world a happy Dragon Boat Festival," the astronauts said while holding a banner reading "Happy Dragon Boat Festival." "The spacecraft is operating normally and all work is proceeding smoothly. Thanks for your concern," said Nie, commander of the three-member crew. Zhang said their journey is going well so far. Wang, China's second female astronaut, paid a tribute to the aerospace researchers who are still on duty during the holiday. The astronauts then entered the craft's orbital module to eat zongzi, or rice dumplings filled with bean paste that are traditionally eaten during the festival. Related: Chinese president shares his joy with space program staff JIUQUAN, June 11 (Xinhua) -- President Xi Jinping met with representatives from organizations participating in the Shenzhou-10 Manned Spacecraft flight mission on Tuesday evening at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. At 17:38 p.m., a three-member crew including one woman set off on the new space mission. Full story Newsmaker: China's first teacher in space JIUQUAN, June 10 (Xinhua) -- Thirty-three-year-old spacewoman Wang Yaping will make history -- she will be China's first teacher in space. Wang will teach Chinese primary and middle school students on Earth physics phenomena in a zero-gravity environment. She is preparing for the lecture and expressed full confidence about the upcoming lesson. Full story Shenzhou-10 mission to teach students in orbit JIUQUAN, June 10 (Xinhua) -- Astronauts on board the Shenzhou-10 spacecraft will teach students through a live video feed system while in orbit, Wu Ping, spokeswoman for China's manned space program, said Monday.