Chinese astronauts give lecture from space

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Shenzhou XIII crew members Wang Yaping (left) and Ye Guangfu give a lecture to students from China’s space station on 9 December (XINHUA)

Chinese astronauts conducted a science lecture 250 miles above Earth to millions of students on December 9, 2021, as they orbited in the Tiangong space station.

Zhai Zhigang, Wang Yaping and Ye Guangfu, all members of the Shenzhou XIII mission crew, showed students, teachers and other participants how they live and work inside the space station, which currently consists of a core module, a spacecraft and two robotic cargo spaceships.

The astronauts displayed their exercise equipment and a specially designed space suit, and conducted demonstrations on physical phenomena in microgravity, such as “disappearing buoyancy” and a “water ball”. Ye, who is on his first spaceflight, showed how he rotated his body in the weightless environment. The astronauts also answered questions from students during the lecture.

The three astronauts went into space on October 16. The hour-long televised event was hosted by the China Manned Space Agency, the Ministry of Education and other government departments. It was the first lecture of the Tiangong Class, China’s first extra-terrestrial lecture series to popularise space science.

More lectures will be held based on China’s manned spaceflights and will also be presented by Chinese astronauts, the manned space agency said. Such activities are intended to spread knowledge about manned spaceflights and spark enthusiasm for science among young people, it added.

Shi Yi, deputy head of teaching and a physics teacher at the Beijing No 101 Middle School, said the space lecture was an eye-opening experience that would ignite students’ interest in science.

Wang Yihan, a fifth-grade student at the Yuxin School Attached to Capital Normal University, said: “The astronauts’ experiments really intrigued and surprised me. I have great interest in spaceflight and would like to take part in our country’s space exploration programme in the future.”

Vincent Wong Wai-shing, deputy principal of Hong Kong’s Pui Kiu College, said after watching the lecture that the event gave Hong Kong students an opportunity to communicate with the astronauts while stimulating their interest in space and science.

Previously published on Chinadaily.com.cn