Al Jazeera reports that China's Manned Space Program has selected a Pakistani astronaut as a payload specialist for the Shenzhou-24 mission, scheduled for launch later this year—marking the first foreign visitor to enter China's space station.
The astronaut’s name has not been disclosed. However, Pakistani pilots Zeshan Ali and Hareem Dad were trained in Beijing’s Space City, undergoing hands-on simulations and intensive Chinese language courses; they are expected to return aboard Shenzhou-23 following the completion of their mission.
This initiative forms part of the broader China-Pakistan Belt and Road cooperation framework. The China National Space Administration will also deploy Pakistan’s first lunar rover, named "Jinnah-1," weighing 35 kilograms and equipped with scientific instruments to analyze lunar plasma, radiation, and soil composition. In recent years, China has significantly expanded its investment in space programs, aiming for crewed lunar landing by 2030 and competing with the United States and Russia on developing nuclear reactors on the Moon to support future base operations.
Original source: toutiao.com/article/1881196615496777/
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