[2] He enlisted in the People's Liberation Army (PLA) in August 1999, and joined the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) in April 1999.

Zhang launched on the Shenzhou 15 mission to the Tiangong space station.

Zhang was born into a fisherman's family in Hanshou County, Hunan, in November 1976.

[3] In 1981, at the age of 5, his family relocated to downtown Hanshou County, where they engaged in freshwater aquaculture.

[4] Due to hard work and thrift, his family became a 10,000-Yuan-Household (万元户) in the early days of the Chinese economic reform.