Search for China's first female astronaut begins

China has begun the preliminary stages for selecting its first female astronauts and will formally announce the selection plan by the end of the year, according to China Daily.

Shanghai Daily has also reported that a few details have been leaked:

She will be selected from the Air Force and be 1.65 to 1.75 meters tall, Beijing Times today quoted Yang Liwei, China's first spaceman, as saying.


But no other selection criteria have been revealed, the paper said.

Although it seems that it will be a while before the rest of the standards are announced, the requirements for female astronauts have apparently already been determined, and are "based on scientific data from experiments conducted on volunteers."

We're pretty sure that this means we can expect insane criteria similar to that of male astronauts: no scars, no cavities, and no bad breath. Female astronauts, like their male counterparts, will also most likely have to gain the permission of their spouse or significant other in order to make it into space. Who knows what other crazy requirements they'll add - Vibrant hair? Wide smile? Parent's signature?