The first astronaut candidates from China’s special administrative regions—Macau and Hong Kong—were revealed on Tuesday. The latter described the announcement as a “glorious page” in the history of the city.
Beijing is pursuing ambitious ambitions for a manned lunar landing by 2030, and to that end has invested billions of dollars in its military-run space program.
Ten candidates were shortlisted for China’s fourth batch of astronauts, including a payload specialist from Macau and one from Hong Kong, according to a statement released by the China Manned Space Agency on Tuesday.
John Lee, the leader of Hong Kong, described it as “a glorious page in Hong Kong’s history.”
In China’s manned space program, Lee stated, “This is the first time that a Hong Kong citizen was selected as a payload specialist, with a chance to become an astronaut to go to space in person, to participate in research and to contribute the country’s space program.”
In a statement released on Tuesday, the Macau administration described the choice of one of its own as “an honor” and said it delivered “a strong inspirational message to the young people of Macau.”
The choice to choose astronauts from the two territories “has garnered strong support and enthusiastic participation from local communities,” according to the China Manned Space Agency.
Under Chinese President Xi Jinping, plans for China’s “space dream” have taken off.
Over the past ten years, Beijing has made significant investments in its space program in an attempt to catch up to the US and Russia, who had been matching their milestones years later.
This month, the nation celebrated the successful return of a spacecraft that had been transporting samples from the far side of the Moon to Earth.
Other accomplishments included the construction of the space station Tiangong, also known as the “heavenly palace,” and the successful landing of robotic rovers on the moon and Mars.
By 2030, China wants to deploy a crewed expedition to the moon and establish a lunar outpost.
