China's astronaut selection follows strict rules

BEIJING - The selection of Chinese astronauts to carry out the country's space missions is following strict rules, an official in charge of astronaut training said.

"We have a set of strict, scientific and well-developed criteria and procedural rules to select astronauts," said Deng Yibing, director of the Chinese Astronaut Research and Training Center, at a press conference held on Wednesday morning, after the successful mission of the Shenzhou X spacecraft.

Deng made the remarks in response to a question about recent doubt on the Shenzhou X mission's female crew member Wang Yaping's real age.

"We had carried out five manned space missions, and all the personal information about the astronauts was released just one day before the launching date, and any information reported prior to these dates may be untrue," Deng said.

He also noted that all the astronauts' personal information should be  scrutinized strictly before being made public.

"We will check their personal information in their citizen identity registration records, their enlistment registration records and their personal archives. We will also get the astronauts' own signatures on this information," Deng said, "I can tell you in a responsible manner that all these documents reveal that Wang was born in January 1980."

Moreover, the official said there is no rigid requirement about the astronaut candidates' marital or parenthood status.

There is no evidence so far that space flight may affect people's ability to have babies, he said.

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