{"id":8018,"date":"2026-04-23T06:44:17","date_gmt":"2026-04-23T06:44:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/?p=8018"},"modified":"2026-04-23T06:52:33","modified_gmt":"2026-04-23T06:52:33","slug":"2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/","title":{"rendered":"2 Pakistani Astronauts Selected for Chinese Space Mission"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p><strong>Web Desk<\/strong><br><strong>April 22, 2026<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>Pakistan has achieved a landmark advancement in its space exploration journey as two astronauts have been selected as candidates for China&#8217;s manned space program, marking the first time foreign astronauts will train for and potentially visit the Tiangong space station.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The two selected astronauts,\u00a0<strong>Khurram Daud<\/strong>\u00a0and\u00a0<strong>Muhammad Zeeshan Ali<\/strong>, will travel to China soon to undergo advanced training at the Astronaut Centre of China (ACC)\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/tribune.com.pk\/story\/2604178\/two-pakistani-astronauts-selected-as-candidates-for-china-space-programme\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.etvbharat.com\/en\/international\/china-selects-two-pakistani-candidates-for-astronaut-training-to-take-part-in-its-space-station-enn26042205914\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a>. After completing all training and passing relevant assessments, one of them will participate in a spaceflight mission as a payload specialist, becoming the first foreign astronaut to board the Chinese space station.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Key Milestones of the Mission<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-table\"><table class=\"has-fixed-layout\"><thead><tr><th class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\">Aspect<\/th><th class=\"has-text-align-left\" data-align=\"left\">Details<\/th><\/tr><\/thead><tbody><tr><td><strong>Selected Astronauts<\/strong><\/td><td>Khurram Daud, Muhammad Zeeshan Ali<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Training Location<\/strong><\/td><td>Astronaut Centre of China (ACC)<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Mission Role<\/strong><\/td><td>Payload Specialist<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Spacecraft<\/strong><\/td><td>Shenzhou<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Destination<\/strong><\/td><td>Tiangong Space Station<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>Expected Launch<\/strong><\/td><td>Late 2026<\/td><\/tr><tr><td><strong>First Foreign Astronaut<\/strong><\/td><td>Yes, first non-Chinese astronaut aboard Tiangong<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Scientific Experiments Aboard the Space Station<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>According to Pakistan&#8217;s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, the Pakistani astronaut will conduct several scientific experiments in microgravity during the mission&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/tribune.com.pk\/story\/2604178\/two-pakistani-astronauts-selected-as-candidates-for-china-space-programme\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.radio.gov.pk\/22-04-2026\/suparco-achieves-milestone-in-human-spaceflight-program\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a>. These experiments will span multiple critical fields:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Material Science<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Fluid Physics<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Life and Bio Science<\/strong><\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Biotechnology<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p>The research conducted during the mission holds significant potential for addressing real-world challenges, including climate resilience, food security, and industrial innovation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Selection Process<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The selection process was rigorous and thorough, conducted in multiple phases. The China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced that the selection of the first group of foreign astronauts for China&#8217;s manned space program was completed in early April 2026&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.deccanherald.com\/world\/china\/china-selects-two-pakistanis-for-astronaut-training-to-take-part-in-its-space-station-3977039\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a>. The two Pakistani candidates emerged successful after three rounds of screening:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ol start=\"1\" class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Preliminary Selection<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Initial screening in Pakistan<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Secondary Selection<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Detailed medical, psychological, and aptitude assessments<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Final Selection<\/strong>\u00a0\u2013 Comprehensive evaluations at ACC<\/li>\n<\/ol>\n\n\n\n<p>The evaluations were conducted in line with international human spaceflight standards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Bilateral Cooperation Agreement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>The selection and training of Pakistani astronauts follows the &#8220;Astronaut Cooperation Agreement&#8221; signed in February 2025 in Islamabad, under the leadership of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/tribune.com.pk\/story\/2604178\/two-pakistani-astronauts-selected-as-candidates-for-china-space-programme\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.etvbharat.com\/en\/international\/china-selects-two-pakistani-candidates-for-astronaut-training-to-take-part-in-its-space-station-enn26042205914\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a>. The agreement was signed between the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) and Pakistan&#8217;s Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission (SUPARCO).<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The CMSA described the selection and training of Pakistani astronauts as a&nbsp;<strong>&#8220;landmark event in the history of China&#8217;s space industry&#8221;<\/strong>&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.dawn.com\/news\/1994090\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-as-candidates-for-chinas-space-programme\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a>. The agency further stated:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p>&#8220;It stands as an iconic achievement of international cooperation on the Chinese space station, and also a successful example of the China-Pakistan all-weather strategic cooperative partnership taking concrete shape in the space sector. This fully demonstrates the open attitude of the Chinese government to share the accomplishments of its space industry with the international community.&#8221;&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/pakobserver.net\/historic-as-2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-training-one-may-fly-to-chinas-space-station\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif&#8217;s Response<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has expressed his appreciation for this major advancement by SUPARCO in promoting deep space research. He also paid tribute to the enduring and strong friendship between Pakistan and China.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The Prime Minister noted that Pakistan&#8217;s inclusion in the human spaceflight mission reflects the close and cooperative ties between the two countries&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.radio.gov.pk\/22-04-2026\/suparco-achieves-milestone-in-human-spaceflight-program\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a>. He further stated that the cooperation agreement was instrumental in enabling Pakistan&#8217;s participation in human spaceflight, reflecting his vision and support&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.globaltimes.cn\/page\/202604\/1359564.shtml\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">SUPARCO&#8217;s Statement<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>SUPARCO, Pakistan&#8217;s national space agency, confirmed that the two astronauts have already departed for China to begin advanced astronaut training. This positions Pakistan in the community of a select group of nations actively engaged in human spaceflight programs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>According to SUPARCO, the Chinese government selected Pakistan as the first foreign partner in its astronaut programme, reflecting the close ties between the two countries.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Pakistan&#8217;s Entry Into Human Spaceflight<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>With this mission, Pakistan joins a select group of nations actively engaged in human spaceflight programs\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/tribune.com.pk\/story\/2604178\/two-pakistani-astronauts-selected-as-candidates-for-china-space-programme\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\"><\/a>. SUPARCO had previously completed the secondary phase of selecting astronaut candidates, marking another step in Pakistan&#8217;s Human Spaceflight Programme, the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR) said in February 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The mission, expected to launch in late 2026, will see a Pakistani astronaut serve as a payload expert on a Shenzhou mission, conducting microgravity experiments that will contribute to scientific knowledge and practical applications.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Web DeskApril 22, 2026 Pakistan has achieved a landmark advancement in its space exploration journey as two astronauts have been selected as candidates for China&#8217;s manned space program, marking the first time foreign astronauts will train for and potentially visit the Tiangong space station. The two selected astronauts,\u00a0Khurram Daud\u00a0and\u00a0Muhammad Zeeshan Ali, will travel to China &hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":8021,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8018","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","","category-pakistan"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v26.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>2 Pakistani Astronauts Selected for Chinese Space Mission<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Pakistani astronauts Khurram Daud, Muhammad Zeeshan Ali, selected as candidates for China&#039;s manned space mission to Tiangong space station.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"2 Pakistani Astronauts Selected for Chinese Space Mission\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Pakistani astronauts Khurram Daud, Muhammad Zeeshan Ali, selected as candidates for China&#039;s manned space mission to Tiangong space station.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"NewsMakers-Daily Latest Urdu Breaking News Updates\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:author\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/zaheerahmad11\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-04-23T06:44:17+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-04-23T06:52:33+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Sparco-mission-1-1.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"530\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"308\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Zaheer Ahmad\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@ZaheerAhmad17\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Zaheer Ahmad\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Zaheer Ahmad\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/e8e03aad4dbf31da89497394f3f2754a\"},\"headline\":\"2 Pakistani Astronauts Selected for Chinese Space Mission\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-23T06:44:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-23T06:52:33+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/\"},\"wordCount\":659,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Sparco-mission-1-1.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"Pakistan\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/\",\"name\":\"2 Pakistani Astronauts Selected for Chinese Space Mission\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Sparco-mission-1-1.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-04-23T06:44:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-04-23T06:52:33+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/e8e03aad4dbf31da89497394f3f2754a\"},\"description\":\"Pakistani astronauts Khurram Daud, Muhammad Zeeshan Ali, selected as candidates for China's manned space mission to Tiangong space station.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Sparco-mission-1-1.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Sparco-mission-1-1.webp\",\"width\":530,\"height\":308,\"caption\":\"2 Pakistani astronauts selected for Chinese space station mission\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"2 Pakistani Astronauts Selected for Chinese Space Mission\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/\",\"name\":\"NewsMakers-Daily Latest Urdu Breaking News Updates\",\"description\":\"We Make Better News\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/e8e03aad4dbf31da89497394f3f2754a\",\"name\":\"Zaheer Ahmad\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/97c1829cc099a7930fc4bd25658e3aabefd7e0b4893f2b2f062db1b6a24aeb01?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/97c1829cc099a7930fc4bd25658e3aabefd7e0b4893f2b2f062db1b6a24aeb01?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Zaheer Ahmad\"},\"description\":\"Muhammad Zaheer Ahmad is a senior journalist having more than 20 years of experience. He has served both print and electronic media at senior positions. Currently, Zaheer is associated with a leading news channel of Pakistan as Sr. Producer News. He is also the Managing Editor of Newsmakers.Com.Pk. Zaheer can be reached at zaheer.ahmad.lhr@gmail.com\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/\",\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/zaheerahmad11\/\",\"https:\/\/x.com\/ZaheerAhmad17\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/author\/zaheer\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"2 Pakistani Astronauts Selected for Chinese Space Mission","description":"Pakistani astronauts Khurram Daud, Muhammad Zeeshan Ali, selected as candidates for China's manned space mission to Tiangong space station.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"2 Pakistani Astronauts Selected for Chinese Space Mission","og_description":"Pakistani astronauts Khurram Daud, Muhammad Zeeshan Ali, selected as candidates for China's manned space mission to Tiangong space station.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/","og_site_name":"NewsMakers-Daily Latest Urdu Breaking News Updates","article_author":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/zaheerahmad11\/","article_published_time":"2026-04-23T06:44:17+00:00","article_modified_time":"2026-04-23T06:52:33+00:00","og_image":[{"width":530,"height":308,"url":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Sparco-mission-1-1.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"author":"Zaheer Ahmad","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@ZaheerAhmad17","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Zaheer Ahmad","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/"},"author":{"name":"Zaheer Ahmad","@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/e8e03aad4dbf31da89497394f3f2754a"},"headline":"2 Pakistani Astronauts Selected for Chinese Space Mission","datePublished":"2026-04-23T06:44:17+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-23T06:52:33+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/"},"wordCount":659,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Sparco-mission-1-1.webp","articleSection":["Pakistan"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/","url":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/","name":"2 Pakistani Astronauts Selected for Chinese Space Mission","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Sparco-mission-1-1.webp","datePublished":"2026-04-23T06:44:17+00:00","dateModified":"2026-04-23T06:52:33+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/e8e03aad4dbf31da89497394f3f2754a"},"description":"Pakistani astronauts Khurram Daud, Muhammad Zeeshan Ali, selected as candidates for China's manned space mission to Tiangong space station.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Sparco-mission-1-1.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/04\/Sparco-mission-1-1.webp","width":530,"height":308,"caption":"2 Pakistani astronauts selected for Chinese space station mission"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/pakistan\/2-pakistani-astronauts-selected-for-chinese-space-mission\/8018\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"2 Pakistani Astronauts Selected for Chinese Space Mission"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/","name":"NewsMakers-Daily Latest Urdu Breaking News Updates","description":"We Make Better News","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/e8e03aad4dbf31da89497394f3f2754a","name":"Zaheer Ahmad","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/97c1829cc099a7930fc4bd25658e3aabefd7e0b4893f2b2f062db1b6a24aeb01?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/97c1829cc099a7930fc4bd25658e3aabefd7e0b4893f2b2f062db1b6a24aeb01?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Zaheer Ahmad"},"description":"Muhammad Zaheer Ahmad is a senior journalist having more than 20 years of experience. He has served both print and electronic media at senior positions. Currently, Zaheer is associated with a leading news channel of Pakistan as Sr. Producer News. He is also the Managing Editor of Newsmakers.Com.Pk. Zaheer can be reached at zaheer.ahmad.lhr@gmail.com","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/","https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/zaheerahmad11\/","https:\/\/x.com\/ZaheerAhmad17"],"url":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/author\/zaheer\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8018","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8018"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8018\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":8022,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8018\/revisions\/8022"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8021"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8018"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8018"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsmakers.com.pk\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8018"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}