Space
China Selects Pakistani Astronaut for Shenzhou‑24 Mission
China’s Manned Space Agency has chosen a Pakistani astronaut as a payload specialist for its upcoming Shenzhou‑24 mission, making the unnamed individual the first foreign national to visit China’s space station. The selection was announced by Chinese state media on Saturday and is part of bilateral cooperation under Beijing’s Belt and Road Initiative. China has not yet named the astronaut or set a departure date, but the mission is expected to launch by the end of the year.
Pakistani pilots Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud have spent months training at the China Astronaut Research and Training Center in Beijing in preparation for the mission. In February, Pakistan and China signed an agreement to establish a Chinese government‑led program to train Pakistani astronauts. China remains Pakistan’s largest trading partner and a major foreign investor.
The China National Space Administration will also deploy Jinnah‑1, Pakistan’s first lunar rover. Weighing 35 kg (77 lb) and equipped with specialized scientific instruments, the rover will study plasma behavior, radiation, and lunar soil composition.
The training program includes practical operational exercises and intensive Chinese language lessons to prepare the candidates for the mission. According to China Central Television, after a short‑term in‑orbit flight, the astronauts would return to Earth aboard the Shenzhou‑23 spacecraft.
China has heavily invested in its space program in recent years, aiming to land astronauts on the Moon by 2030. The United States, Russia, and China are also competing to build nuclear reactors on the Moon, which would power the mining of frozen water in lunar craters and support future lunar bases.