{"id":7492,"date":"2026-10-18T17:22:45","date_gmt":"2026-10-18T17:22:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.worldwatchalert.com\/?p=7492"},"modified":"2026-10-18T17:22:47","modified_gmt":"2026-10-18T17:22:47","slug":"pakistans-first-astronaut-to-travel-to-space-on-november-25-ahsan-iqbal-announces","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.worldwatchalert.com\/?p=7492","title":{"rendered":"Pakistan\u2019s First Astronaut to Travel to Space on November 25, Ahsan Iqbal Announces"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>NAROWAL: Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal has announced that Pakistan\u2019s first astronaut will travel to space on November 25, marking a significant milestone in the country\u2019s space programme with cooperation from China.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Addressing the closing ceremony of World Space Week in Narowal on Saturday, Iqbal said China, a longstanding partner of Pakistan, was cooperating in the country\u2019s efforts to send its astronaut into space.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWith China\u2019s cooperation, Pakistan will reach new heights in the field of space research,\u201d the minister said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He added that Pakistan had set a target of achieving a moon landing by 2035.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Highlighting the growing importance of satellite technology, Iqbal said it had become one of the most critical technologies for Pakistan and the rest of the world. He noted that the country\u2019s national security system was also linked to satellite technology.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The minister said global space ambitions were expanding beyond lunar exploration, with discussions increasingly focusing on establishing human settlements on Mars.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIf we do not conduct research, we will fall behind in the race for development,\u201d he warned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Iqbal stressed the importance of encouraging young people to ask questions, explore new ideas and develop a scientific approach to finding answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cPakistan will have to regain the leadership in knowledge and research that was once our identity,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The minister also announced that the University of Narowal had secured first position at the Islamabad Science Festival.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He said construction of a Centre for Advanced Technology and Emerging Sciences at the university would begin this year. According to Iqbal, the project had remained confined to official files during the previous government\u2019s tenure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">He further announced that resources had been arranged to establish what he described as Pakistan\u2019s first space museum at the University of Narowal.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>NAROWAL: Federal Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal has announced that Pakistan\u2019s first astronaut will travel to space on November 25, marking a significant milestone in the&hellip; <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":7493,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[35,2721],"class_list":["post-7492","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-science-tech","tag-pakistan","tag-pakistan-china-space-program"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.7 - 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