China Plans Year-Long Space Mission and Pakistani Astronaut

One Chinese astronaut will spend an entire year aboard the Tiangong space station starting this spring, marking the country's longest human spaceflight mission yet.

The China Manned Space Engineering Office announced that one crew member from the Shenzhou-23 mission will remain in orbit for 12 months, conducting crucial research on how the human body adapts to extended time in space. The spacecraft is scheduled to launch in April or May from Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center.

This extended mission puts China alongside NASA and Russia, which have already completed year-long stays aboard the International Space Station. The data collected will be invaluable for planning future deep space missions to the moon and beyond.

The announcement also revealed that Pakistan will send its first astronaut to Tiangong, likely launching in late 2026 aboard Shenzhou-24 for a short-duration visit. The Pakistani astronaut will spend several days conducting experiments and outreach activities while six astronauts temporarily share the station during crew handover.

The selection process for Pakistan's historic spaceflight is progressing smoothly, following an agreement signed between the two countries in February 2025. China also plans to send payload specialists from Hong Kong and Macau to the space station as soon as this year.

The Ripple Effect

These missions represent more than just technical achievements. They demonstrate how space exploration is becoming more inclusive, opening doors for countries and regions that have never sent people beyond Earth's atmosphere before.

China's confidence in conducting a year-long mission also shows how far Tiangong's life support systems have come. The station's radiation protection, medical monitoring, and psychological support frameworks are now proven reliable enough to sustain humans for extended periods.

The timing aligns with China's broader space ambitions, including landing astronauts on the moon before 2030. Ground infrastructure at the Wenchang Space Launch Site is being upgraded this year to support future lunar missions, while the Mengzhou spacecraft and Long March 10 rocket recently completed successful tests.

As more countries gain access to space through international partnerships, the dream of exploring the cosmos is becoming a shared human endeavor rather than a competition between superpowers.