Sky not the limit in knowledge quest

The medium-and long-term plan for space science jointly released by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the China National Space Administration and the China Manned Space Agency on Tuesday includes topics like extreme universe, space-time ripples, panoramic view of sun-Earth, habitable planets, as well as biological and physical sciences in space. At first glance it looks straight out of a science fiction novel, but a closer look at China’s science and technology development shows that they are practicable.

For example, the extreme universe sector deals with exploring the origins and evolution of the universe, which involves dark matter and baryonic matter detection. China is doubtlessly a leader in this field of research, as its Wukong satellite has the widest observational energy range and the best energy resolution among all dark matter particle detection satellites in the world. Also its Jinping Underground Laboratory, located 2,400 meters under the earth, is the world’s deepest and largest underground lab of the kind.

Biological and physical space science is mainly about movement of matter and life activities in space. It will give a better understanding of quantum mechanics and general relativity. China has advantages in that sector, too, as its space station is functioning well in orbit, and will be the world’s only space station whenever the International Space Station, which has already exceeded its service years, retires.

The medium-and long-term plan is a blueprint for space innovations from now to 2050, during which period China will doubtlessly continue sharpening its tools for more achievements.

In some sense, the release of the plan is itself a demonstration of China’s confidence in exploring the universe and uncovering its secrets, while the goals it raises are both ambitious and practical.