Hong Kong's first astronaut selected

Lai Ka-ying, a 43-year-old mother of three and police chief inspector, has been named as the first person from Hong Kong to enter space.

Selected by the China Manned Space Agency, she will serve as a payload specialist on the upcoming Shenzhou-23 mission to the Tiangong space station.

Lai will be responsible for operating a locally developed observatory to monitor greenhouse gas emissions on Earth.

Her selection is being celebrated as a major achievement for Hong Kong's scientific community and a symbol of its growing integration with China's national space program.