Ten candidates, including eight space pilots and two payload specialists, have been selected for China's fourth batch of taikonauts, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced on Tuesday.

Of the two payload specialists, one is from the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region and the other is from the Macao Special Administrative Region, said the CMSA.

It added this is first time it has selected payload specialists in Hong Kong and Macao, a move which has garnered strong support and enthusiastic participation from local communities.