Beijing: China on October 16 declared that its maiden manned space mission was a success with the first astronaut on board the Shenzhou V spacecraft returning safely to Earth.

"The mission is successful", the Official Xinhua news agency reported from the site where the re-entry capsule landed in north China's grasslands in inner Mongolia.

China's first astronaut Yang Liwei was seen moving out of the re-entry capsule of Shenzhou V spaceship and waved to the recovery team, Xinhua news agency said.

According to the state television, the capsule landed at 6.28 AM (03:58 hrs IST).

Yang had spend 21 hours in space travelling more than 6,00,000 kms and orbited the Earth 14 times. He became the 241st human being to visit outer space.

Yang was also confirmed to remain in good health after the journey, the recovery team said.

PTI