Selection of foreign space crew to start
中国航天将选拔外国航天员登上天宫
Qualified candidates scheduled to receive systematic, extensive training in China
符合条件的候选人计划在中国接受全面系统的培训
China will start the selection and training process soon for foreign astronauts to participate in joint flights to the country's Tiangong space station, according to a high-ranking space official.
据一位高级航天官员透露，中国将很快启动外国宇航员参加中国天宫空间站联合飞行的选拔和培训程序。
Chen Shanguang, deputy chief planner of China's manned space programs, told China Central Television on Saturday that multiple countries have told China that they hope to send their astronauts to the Tiangong station.
周六（2月25日），中国载人航天工程副总设计师陈善广告诉中国中央电视台，多国已向中国表示，希望把本国宇航员送到天宫站。
"We will soon begin to select candidates from those nations for joint flights to our space station, and they will be able to work with our astronauts to carry out scientific tasks in space," Chen said.
陈善广说：“我们将很快开始从这些国家挑选候选人，参加中国天宫空间站联合飞行，他们将能与中国航天员一起在太空中执行科学任务。”
Once the candidates pass the initial selection process, they will come to China to receive systematic and extensive training to learn how to operate Chinese spacecraft and live and work inside the Tiangong station, according to Chen.
据陈善广介绍，一旦候选人通过初选程序，他们将来到中国接受全面系统的培训，学习如何操作中国航天器，以及如何在天宫站内生活和工作。
"We also hope that the foreign candidates can gain some knowledge about Chinese culture because they will be onboard a Chinese space station. Moreover, we hope that cultural exchanges between foreign and Chinese astronauts will help with their flight," he said.
他说：“我们也希望外国候选人能够了解中国文化，因为他们将登上中国空间站。此外，我们希望外国和中国航天员之间的文化交流将有助于他们的飞行。”
Pang Zhihao, an expert on space exploration technology and a renowned writer on spaceflight, said on Sunday that one of the most important criteria for the foreign candidates is their Chinese-language skill.
周日（2月26日），空间探测技术专家、著名航天作家庞之浩表示，对外国候选人来说，最重要的标准之一是他们的中文技能。
"The work language on the International Space Station is English. Therefore, the language to be spoken inside a Chinese station is naturally Chinese," Pang said, echoing Chen's advice that those foreign astronauts should know about Chinese culture.
庞之浩说：“国际空间站的工作语言是英语。因此，在中国空间站内使用的语言自然是汉语。”这与陈善广的建议不谋而合，即那些外国宇航员应该了解中国文化。
Chen is not the first Chinese space official who has spoken about sending foreigners to the Tiangong station.
陈善广并不是第一位谈到将外国人送到天宫站的中国航天官员。
Before Chen, Yang Liwei, the first Chinese in space and now a deputy chief planner of the country's manned spaceflights, and Hao Chun, head of the China Manned Space Agency, have said that China is open to international cooperation on its space station, including flights jointly crewed with other nations.
在陈善广之前，第一位进入太空的中国人、现任中国载人航天工程副总设计师的杨利伟和中国载人航天工程办公室主任郝淳都表示，中国对空间站的国际合作持开放态度，包括与其他国家的联合载人飞行。
Nie Haisheng, a senior astronaut and commander of the Shenzhou XII mission crew, said in 2021 that he and his fellow Chinese astronauts would welcome having foreign peers on the Tiangong station.
高级宇航员、神舟十二号飞行任务指令长聂海胜曾在2021年表示，他和他的中国航天员同事欢迎外国宇航员进入天宫站。
"We welcome our foreign counterparts, whom we will treat as friends, to join us at this 'space home'. We are determined to make our station a shared platform to advance science and technology to benefit all people around the world," he said.
他说：“我们欢迎外国宇航员，我们将视他们为朋友，欢迎外国宇航员加入我们的‘太空之家’。我们决心使我们的空间站成为一个共享平台，推动科学技术，造福世界各地的所有人。”
