{
  "id": 18675319,
  "title": "Pakistan’s first astronaut to board Chinese space station",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/07/pakistans-first-astronaut-to-board-chinese-space-station",
  "topic": "science",
  "section": "Science",
  "published": "2026-11-07T08:38:30.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Business Recorder",
    "slug": "business-recorder",
    "url": "https://www.brecorder.com/news/40447892/pakistans-first-astronaut-to-board-chinese-space-station"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Pakistan is poised to make history as its first astronaut is set to join the Chinese Shenzhou-24 crewed flight mission, according to the China Manned Space Agency. This joint spaceflight between China and Pakistan marks a significant milestone in their space cooperation, representing the first time a foreign astronaut will travel to China's space station. Following a brief stay in orbit, the Pakistani astronaut will return to Earth on board the Shenzhou-23 spacecraft.\n\nIn February 2025, China and Pakistan signed a cooperation agreement in Islamabad, aimed at selecting and training Pakistani astronauts for missions to China's space station. After three rounds of rigorous selection and assessment, Muhammad Zeeshan Ali and Khurram Daud were chosen as reserve astronauts. They subsequently enrolled in China's astronaut training program, preparing for the mission. Once the required training and evaluations are completed, one of the two candidates will embark on the crewed flight mission, while the other will act as a backup.\n\nFederal Minister for Planning and Development Ahsan Iqbal announced on October 18 that Pakistan's first astronaut will launch from China's space center on November 25. During the concluding ceremony of World Space Week in Narowal, Iqbal expressed Pakistan's ambition to achieve a lunar landing by 2035. He emphasized that cooperation with China would enable Pakistan to reach new heights in space exploration.",
  "summary": "Pakistan is all set to make history in its space exploration as one Pakistani astronaut will join the Shenzhou-24 crewed flight mission as a payload specialist, APP news agency quoted the China Manned Space Agency as saying on Saturday. The mission will mark the first joint spaceflight involving Chinese and foreign astronauts in the history of China’s manned space programme, representing a…",
  "key_points": [
    "Pakistan's first astronaut to join Chinese Shenzhou-24 mission",
    "Agreement signed in February 2025 for astronaut training",
    "Launch scheduled for November 25, 2035 lunar landing goal"
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 3,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Free Malaysia Today",
        "title": "Pakistani astronaut to join Chinese space station’s Shenzhou-24 mission",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/07/pakistani-astronaut-to-join-chinese-space-stations-shenzhou-24-mission",
        "published": "2026-11-07T05:20:21.000Z"
      },
      {
        "outlet": "Gulf News",
        "title": "Pakistani astronaut to board Shenzhou 24 and become the first foreigner on China's space station",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/11/07/pakistani-astronaut-to-board-shenzhou-24-and-become-the-first",
        "published": "2026-11-07T06:06:06.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}