Wang Haoze joined the Shenzhou-19 mission to space. Photo: YouTube/China News Service
Nuclear rocket scientist Wang Haoze has made history as the first civilian Chinese female astronaut.
In October, she and the rest of the Shenzhou-19 spaceship crew blasted off on a mission to China’s Tiangong space station.
The journey was all the more remarkable for Wang. She never thought she would go to space.
“I was mainly responsible for preliminary research on new engines to develop future rockets for deep space exploration,” she told China’s state broadcaster CCTV.
“I never imagined that as a space science and technology professional, I would have the chance to become an astronaut.”
“When I came across the opportunity, I felt it was so precious and I signed up. It is incredible,” she said.
Wang is the third Chinese woman on a crewed space flight, after Wang Yaping and Liu Yang. Wang and Liu were not civilians since they both served as transport pilots in the People’s Liberation Army Air Force before becoming astronauts.