The word has featured in the Longman and Oxford English dictionaries, and the term became more common in 2003 when China sent its first astronaut Yang Liwei into space aboard the Shenzhou 5 spacecraft.
ðə wˈɜːd hɐz fˈiːtʃɚd ɪnðə lˈɔŋmən ænd ˈɑːksfɚd ˈɪŋɡlɪʃ dˈɪkʃənˌɛɹiz, ænd ðə tˈɜːm bɪkˌeɪm mˈoːɹ kˈɑːmən ɪn tˈuː θˈaʊzənd θɹˈiː wɛn tʃˈaɪnə sˈɛnt ɪts fˈɜːst ˈæstɹənˌɔːt jˈɑːŋ lˈɪweɪ ˌɪntʊ spˈeɪs ɐbˈoːɹd ðə ʃˈɛnʒuː fˈaɪv spˈeɪskɹæft.