BEIJING -- China's Shenzhou XIX crew aboard the orbiting Tiangong space station received a shipment of supplies from Earth on Saturday, after the Tianzhou 8 cargo spacecraft successfully docked with the space station.

At 8:26 am, astronaut Cai Xuzhe opened the hatch of Tianzhou 8 and entered the cargo ship.

Tianzhou 8 carried approximately six tons of materials, including consumables for the astronauts' in-orbit residency, propellants, experiment equipment, and over 400 kilograms of scientific research supplies.

The Shenzhou XIX crew will proceed with cargo transfer and other related tasks as planned.

China launched Tianzhou 8 on Friday night to deliver supplies to its orbiting Tiangong space station. About three hours later, the cargo craft successfully docked with the space station.