DM Monitoring
BEIJING: Pakistan’s efforts to develop its space capabilities are set to enter a new phase, as one of its astronauts prepares to join a Chinese crewed space mission, gaining an opportunity to participate directly in human spaceflight.
The Pakistani astronaut will take part in China’s Shenzhou-24 mission as a payload specialist, becoming the first foreign astronaut to visit China’s space station. The astronaut will conduct a short-term orbital flight and return to Earth aboard the Shenzhou-23 spacecraft, according to China’s Manned Space Agency.
For Pakistan, the mission represents more than a symbolic achievement. It offers an opportunity to gain practical experience in human spaceflight, scientific payload operations and astronaut training, potentially contributing to the country’s longer-term space ambitions.
“Human spaceflight is one of the most technologically demanding areas of scientific cooperation. For Pakistan, sending an astronaut to China’s space station means gaining access to training, research and operational experience that would be difficult to develop independently,” said Zhang Chaozhe, Director of the Pakistan Study Center at Sichuan University.
The mission also marks a new stage in China-Pakistan space cooperation, which has developed over more than three decades.
In 1990, Pakistan’s first experimental satellite, Badr-1, was launched aboard a Chinese rocket from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center. More recently, Pakistan’s PRSC-EO3 remote-sensing satellite was successfully placed into orbit by a Chinese Long March-6 rocket in April 2026.
“China-Pakistan space cooperation has gradually expanded from satellite launches and related projects to a much more advanced field. The participation of a Pakistani astronaut in a Chinese crewed mission reflects the growing depth of bilateral trust and technological cooperation,” media quoted Zhang as saying.
He noted that human spaceflight requires close coordination in areas involving astronaut safety, technical systems and mission operations. Such cooperation therefore depends on a particularly high level of mutual confidence.
Beyond bilateral ties, the mission also highlights the opportunities China’s space station can offer to developing countries.
Through cooperation with the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), China has opened opportunities for countries around the world to conduct scientific experiments aboard its space station. The first round of cooperation selected nine projects involving 23 institutions from 17 UN Member States, according to THE UNOOSA.
For countries with less-developed space programmes, this provides an alternative route to participating in space research without having to independently establish all the necessary launch and orbital infrastructure.
“Space exploration should not remain an opportunity available only to a small number of countries with established space programmes. International cooperation can enable developing countries to participate in scientific research, accumulate experience and gradually strengthen their own capabilities,” Zhang said.
The Pakistani astronaut’s mission is thus significant on two levels: it advances a longstanding bilateral partnership while offering a practical example of how international cooperation can broaden participation in human spaceflight.
For Pakistan, the experience gained could become a starting point for further development of its space sector. For other developing countries, it may also offer a reference for exploring new paths into space research and exploration.
