Hong Kong women may soon be reaching for the heavens - literally.
From next year, the mainland's space programme will begin training women - including possibly those from Hong Kong - for manned missions to orbit the Earth, land on the moon and even travel to Mars.
Captain Ellen Yan Suk-yin, the Government Flying Services' only female captain, said she would jump at the opportunity to join.
'I think it sounds quite challenging. Hong Kong's a small place and I never imagined that we would ever have such an opportunity,' she said.
Lee Lai-shan, a 1996 Olympic windsurfing gold medalist, said she might be tempted.
'I think China's wish to train its first female astronaut is a good thing. Most astronauts are men and it's good to give women a chance too,' she said.
The second-in-command of the mainland's manned space programme said recruitment for female astronauts would start next year. He said women from around the country, including Hong Kong and Macau, could apply.