On June 18, 2012, during the Shenzhou IX mission, Liu Yang, responsible for documenting the scenes inside the orbiting capsule, unexpectedly turned the camera to herself and took some "selfies." Her sweet and calm smile instantly lightened the mood, bringing laughter to the ground monitoring hall. Her relaxed state not only eased the minds of monitoring experts, but also reassured those concerned about her. As the first Chinese female astronaut, Liu captured significant attention with her every move in outer space.

Behind her smile lay years of hard work and perseverance.

In the summer of 2009, the People's Liberation Army General Armaments Department (GAD) quietly initiated the selection for the second batch of astronaut candidates. Different from previous selections which involved only male candidates, this time 15 female candidates were chosen, including Liu who was born in 1978 in Linzhou City, central China's Henan Province.

There's no shortcut to the universe. Becoming an astronaut requires rigorous selection and training.

The physical requirements for astronauts are extremely stringent. The physical examination alone contains over 100 items, including physiological and psychological aspects. Any failure will directly disqualify the candidate. Selected astronauts must be in perfect health, without severe illness within three generations of their family. Even pharyngitis, rhinitis, drug allergy, tooth decay, grey fingernails, scars, and snoring would become a restraining factor.

The challenges didn't stop here. Astronauts must be experienced in handling in-flight risks. Since the official establishment of the astronaut brigade of the GAD on January 5, 1998, all astronauts have logged over 800 flight hours and have successfully managed in-flight emergencies.