Wrapping up 204 days in orbit, three Chinese astronauts flew back to Earth aboard a Shenzhou spacecraft Friday, leaving three crewmates behind on the Tiangong space station with a busted lifeboat.

Two weeks ago, the Shenzhou-21 transported the three astronauts taking over from the Shenzhou-20 crew at the permanently inhabited space station known as Tiangong, or "Heavenly Palace".