Short comment: From "Tianwen" to "Tiangong", why do you insist on seeking the universe?
China News Service, Beijing, April 24 Title: From "Tianwen" to "Tiangong", why do you insist on seeking the universe?
Author Xu Xueying
"What the hell is going on? Twelve points? Sun Moon Ann genus? Lexing Ann Chen? ”
When the Shenzhou 13 astronauts returned to Earth, the key technology verification of the first phase of the construction of the Chinese space station was successful, and the starry sky in Qu Yuan's "Tianwen" more than 2,000 years ago ushered in the sequel of scientific and technological sketching.
Data chart: On April 16, the return module of the Shenzhou 13 manned spacecraft successfully landed in the predetermined area of the Dongfeng landing field. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Ren Junchuan
On the occasion of the seventh China Space Day, looking back at the history of the world and Chinese civilization, mankind has never stopped exploring the universe. From Shishen stargazing, wanhu flying to Gagarin into space, Armstrong landing on the moon, and then to the 21st century", "Zhu Rong" exploration, "Xihe" day by day, manned "Dragon" spacecraft docking with the International Space Station, the starlight reflects the space journey of the East and the West. Why do human beings tirelessly seek the universe?
"The four directions of the upper and lower sides are known as the universe, and the ancient and the present are known as the universe." The words "Yu" and "Zeus" originally referred to the eaves and beams of the house, and later extended to the infinite time and space. Exploring the universe is also the way for human beings to look at their own survival and development from a higher dimension.
Originally, human questions about the universe may have originated from curiosity and romantic reverie, but with the rise of modern science, exploration has increasingly shifted from spontaneous to conscious. From human evolution to the origin of the earth to the theory of the Big Bang, space hides opportunities to test countless scientific hypotheses and doctrines, as well as clues to the survival and development of human beings. The refinement of aerospace theory and practice is conducive to deepening human scientific understanding of the causes of the earth and even the evolutionary history of the solar system.
As far as the progress of human society is concerned, space provides a rare special environment for research experiments in various fields. Previously, the International Space Station has carried out a number of scientific research activities such as astronaut heart and blood vessel changes, Candida albicans, protein crystal growth research and other scientific research activities, and has achieved fruitful results. The zero gravity, vacuum and other characteristics of space, one for human disease prevention and control, food security, etc. provide new ideas, such as space breeding, space cancer research, etc.; the other is to expand the human living space to provide a research platform, because whether in low Earth orbit or deep space, the Earth's atmosphere lacks a corresponding human physiological experimental environment.
Aerospace science and technology is also the embodiment of comprehensive national strength and national scientific and technological level. The implementation of engineering planning such as manned spaceflight and lunar exploration has not only cultivated a high-quality modern scientific research team, but also led to the iteration of technological innovation in aerospace and even in the fields related to the national economy and people's livelihood.
Data chart: On December 9, 2021, the first space lecture on the Chinese space station was officially launched. Photo by China News Service reporter Yu Jing
Ancient astronomy often belongs to the fields of astrology and fortune telling, but in the final analysis, it is still human beings who have constructed a set of logical and self-consistent interpretive principles under the condition of limited cognition. The scramble in the Western Enlightenment made astronomy infused with the color of scientific rationality, and scientific knowledge of the universe spread to the East and even the world. Founded in 1442 AD, the Beijing Ancient Observatory was designed and supervised by nan Huairen, a Belgian missionary in the Qing Dynasty. It is still witnessing the shift of stars at the Jianguo Gate, becoming an ancient witness to the exchange of astronomical fields between China and the West.
As the importance of space engineering becomes more prominent around the world, the driving force of human exploration of the universe has developed from ignorant curiosity to targeted scientific research.
In the 1980s, China included manned spaceflight in the Outline of the High-Tech Research and Development Program ("863"). In 1992, the "three-step" development strategy of China's manned space project was formulated. Today, "Chang'e" has come true to the moon, "Tiangong" is no longer far away, and China's modern aerospace industry and ancient myths and legends constitute a romantic intertext that spans thousands of years. Our cognitive boundaries of the universe have broken through the romantic fantasy of "picking stars by hand", and with the support of national power, they have expanded day by day, bursting out with unprecedented power.
This year, the Chinese space station will complete the construction on orbit, and the Qingtian and Dream experiment modules will dock with the Tiantian and core modules. At that time, a large number of scientific experimental devices can provide scientific research hardware facilities for basic physics, astronomy, life sciences, materials science and many other disciplines. As part of the United Nations' "Global Space Sharing" initiative, China's open space station provides a new platform for the peaceful use of space by mankind. With the official operation of the Chinese space station, more international cooperation and exchanges will begin from then on.
Standing on the top of Mount Taishan, you can "see the mountains and small". Observing the Earth in space may break through regional barriers and historical clouds to reach the intersection of human civilization. Humans originated in a corner of the universe and live together on three-tenths of the earth's land. Where do we come from and where are we going? Flying to "beyond the clouds" is even romanticism, but also the light of exploring the future of mankind through the eyes of science. (End)