Science on the space station will benefit all

China yesterday released the first nine international cooperation projects for the country’s planned space station.

The selection was jointly implemented by the China Manned Space Agency and the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs.

The nine projects involve 23 entities from 17 countries in the fields of aerospace medicine, space life sciences and biotechnology, microgravity physics and combustion science, astronomy and other emerging technologies.

Lin Xiqiang, spokesperson of the CMSA, said one of the selection criteria was scientific significance.

The selected projects should not only promote the progress in related scientific fields but also help applicant countries strengthen aerospace technology and research capacity.

“The ‘Space Cancer’ project will improve the understanding of the cause of cancer and offer a new perspective for cancer prevention and treatment,” Lin said.

“A study about miscible liquids under microgravity will facilitate innovation in chemical or biochemical industries.”

Other selected projects include studies about microorganisms under microgravity, flame instabilities, gamma-ray bursts detection as well as the development of solar batteries.

Hao Chun, director general of the CMSA, said the agency will continue to work closely with the UNOOSA to improve and publish the second batch of cooperation projects.

China has always been engaged with the international space community.

In March 2016, the CMSA and UNOOSA signed a memorandum of understanding to invite UN member states to conduct scientific experiments aboard the China space station. By May 2018, 42 cooperation proposals from 27 countries had been received.

China’s space station is expected to be completed in 2022. The station will serve as a space laboratory to carry out multidisciplinary scientific research. It will have a core module and experiment modules, which are under development.

China is also willing to share the achievements of manned spaceflight with countries all over the world, especially with the developing countries, Lin said.