preface
15 October 2003 was a day that the people of all ethnic groups throughout the country were eagerly awaiting. This morning, ordinary people turned on the TV early, locked the live broadcast of CCTV, and waited for the next exciting moment.
At this moment, the dream of manned spaceflight that generations of Chinese astronauts have been painstakingly pursuing seems to be finally expected to be realized under the witness of the people of the whole country, and the hero who has attracted much attention is Yang Liwei.
The Shenzhou 5 spacecraft slowly took off in the nervous mood of the Chinese people, and Yang Liwei in the cockpit was also fully engaged in this extraordinary mission.
In space, he faces unprecedented challenges, but his calmness and professionalism allow him to cope with a variety of complex situations. In the space environment where gravity disappears, Yang Liwei's body and mind have undergone great tests. He not only needs to complete scientific experiments and tasks, but also take care of his own health and safety.
When Yang Liwei successfully returned to the ground on October 16, the big stone hanging in people's hearts finally landed. He sat in his seat, holding flowers in his hand, smiling and waving to the camera, a scene that touched thousands of people. But he had many questions to communicate with aerospace experts at this time, and the mysterious experience in space also made him unforgettable.
What kind of difficulties and obstacles did Yang Liwei encounter when completing this task beyond history? What was that mysterious experience he had in space?
First, young people aspire to the sky, and boys should be self-reliant
In 1952, just three years after the birth of New China. This 7-year-old boy was born in an ordinary worker family in Anshan, Liaoning Province. His eager exploratory gaze always involuntarily looked to the sky.
"When you grow up, you must be a pilot and fly in the blue sky and white clouds with an airplane!" Every time he talks about the dream in his heart, Yang Liwei's eyes are shining with beautiful expectations.
Parents do not stop their children from yearning for flying, but often tell him to study hard. They hope that children can realize their ideals in life through their own efforts.
Since then, the profession of pilot has been deeply rooted in Yang Liwei's heart. Every time he looked up at the sky, every plane whizzing over his head reminded him to study hard and grow.
For this dream, young Yang Liwei studied hard. His grades have always been among the best, and he has even been rated as "three good students". At the same time, he also insisted on physical exercise to ensure that he was physically strong and able to adapt to the conditions required for flying.
Yang Liwei fully understands that to become a good pilot, it is not enough to rely on dreams. He must be excellent in knowledge, physique, will and quality in order to stand out in the future competition.
To this end, he strives to adjust his life routine to ensure that the time for study and exercise is reasonably arranged. Every morning, Yang Liwei will get up to do a series of morning exercises to enhance his physique. Then start carefully reviewing the textbook knowledge and memorizing the text and vocabulary.
After school, Yang Liwei never went to play like other children. Instead, run on the playground and swim with classmates by the river. Although these activities are hard, they have made Yang Liwei's physique stronger and stronger.
At night, when the other children are sleeping, Yang Liwei will turn on the lamp and continue to delve into the aviation knowledge he is interested in. He even took the initiative to go to the library to borrow related books to understand the structural principles of the aircraft.
Yang Liwei's efforts quickly paid off. His grades have always been at the top, and he even broke the county record in the exam. Teachers and classmates were impressed by him and praised him for his success in the future.
These affirmations and encouragements further inspired Yang Liwei's determination to realize his dream. He knew he had a long way to go and trek himself to become a qualified pilot.
But he was not discouraged, but maintained a strong curiosity and enthusiasm for learning. Yang Liwei always reminds himself to be in awe of knowledge, love and dedication to his job, so as to gradually improve himself and truly become a qualified socialist builder.
Finally, in 1970, Yang Liwei joined the People's Liberation Army Air Force as a fighter pilot. He carefully studied the skills of using various types of fighters, and constantly summed up experience and improved his skills in piloting practice.
Soon, Yang Liwei became a recognized "gold-medal" pilot in the brigade. Every takeoff and landing, he can use his excellent flying skills to complete difficult tasks. Colleagues praised the young pilot for his calm composure and strong execution.
"The sky is my journey, I am the master of the sky." When Yang Liwei flew a fighter jet in the clouds, he always couldn't suppress his inner ecstasy.
However, being a good fighter pilot is not enough. Yang Liwei's chest has always burned with a bigger dream - to become an astronaut and start the space journey of the Chinese nation!
Second, thousands of choices can be selected, who can go to the sky
In 1996, the selection of Chinese astronauts began. With the rich experience of fighter pilots, Yang Liwei successfully passed the primary selection and entered the next round of assessment.
Faced with the severe test of astronaut selection, Yang Liwei did not slack off. In every project, he gave his all and tried to give the best results.
Seeing that victory was at hand, the fruits of victory unexpectedly slipped away. In the 1996 assessment, although Yang Liwei performed well, he was not selected due to minor differences.
For him who is diligent and hardworking, it is tantamount to a thunderbolt on a sunny day. Yang Liwei was depressed for a while, but quickly picked himself up again. He understands that the path of dreams is never easy, and only by working harder can he win in the end.
When the second selection came again in 1997, Yang Liwei immediately applied to take the exam. This time, he understood the rigor of the selection more and made sufficient preparations.
In order to ensure that there are no more problems in physical fitness, Yang Liwei began to increase the amount of exercise every day, perform long-distance running in a plateau and low-oxygen environment, and repeatedly crush his weight limit.
At the same time, he consulted a psychologist to learn scientific methods of mental regulation. This helps him to keep a calm and rational mind in various experiments, not to be disturbed by unexpected events.
In addition, Yang Liwei also focused on breaking through the weakness of underwater survival. He is no longer overwhelmed by choking on water, but through a lot of practical training, he has mastered the skills to save his life in a harsh environment.
Yang Liwei understands that to succeed, he must grasp his own shortcomings. Therefore, he developed a targeted improvement plan for the weak points in previous experiments. This gave him more confidence in the second assessment.
Finally, in all subjects, Yang Liwei achieved excellent results. In particular, he has made a qualitative leap in the two projects of psychological quality and underwater operation, which greatly increases the competitiveness of the selection.
In the fall of 1997, Yang Liwei received a notice of selection. This time, he became a member of the Chinese astronauts as he wished!
Standing in the spotlight, Yang Liwei was thrilled in his heart. At the same time, he is well aware of his responsibility. To start the space journey of the Chinese nation, the road is long.
Becoming an astronaut is just the beginning. Next, a more difficult task awaits Yang Liwei's challenge.
Third, lying down for six years, Shenzhou sailed and swam again
After being selected as an astronaut in 1997, Yang Liwei devoted himself to more onerous and rigorous training.
Every training program is extremely hard and dangerous, but Yang Liwei never flinches. He takes on new challenges and sharpens himself through iteration.
Operational use of aircraft, space survival technology, backup manual control... Yang Liwei is fully committed to ensuring that every skill is fully applied. At the same time, he also insisted on reading a lot, memorizing space knowledge, and enriching his knowledge structure.
"An excellent astronaut must not only have excellent physical fitness, but also have excellent theoretical skills." This has become a heart phrase that Yang Liwei drives himself every day.
In addition to his already excellent flight operation skills, Yang Liwei began to study astronomy, materials engineering, cosmic biology and other professional knowledge. He is not satisfied with staying at the entry level, but hopes to enrich himself and internalize the core essence of each discipline.
For example, in the astronomy part, Yang Liwei not only studied the orbits of the major planets in the solar system, but also carefully studied cutting-edge theories such as black holes and galaxy evolution. This gave him a more scientific and comprehensive understanding of space.
In terms of materials engineering, Yang Liwei took the initiative to read the latest research results in authoritative foreign journals. This not only expands his horizons, but also makes him more professional and skilled in operating spacecraft materials and equipment.
It can be said that Yang Liwei has turned himself into a "knowledge worm" machine, "swallowing" a large amount of information, and then transforming it into his own essence. This laid a solid foundation for him to be competent for future tasks.
While strengthening professional knowledge, Yang Liwei also pays attention to psychological quality training. He meditates frequently to maintain a high level of concentration and alertness. In addition, he participated in psychological experiments that simulated confined spaces and learned to control fears.
Rich knowledge and excellent psychological endurance provided a strong guarantee for Yang Liwei's calm response when he encountered danger in space.
In July 2003, after a long wait, Yang Liwei finally received the exciting news that he had been selected for China's first manned space flight mission in October!
From an ordinary teenager, to an excellent pilot, to an aerospace hero at the moment. On the long road of chasing his dreams, Yang Liwei used tenacious perseverance and hard work to reach the peak of his life step by step.
Standing in front of the CCTV camera, Yang Liwei's hands trembled slightly. Pride, glory, responsibility... Various emotions are intertwined in the heart. To carry out this mission, he must give it his all!
On October 15, 2003, the Shenzhou 5 manned spacecraft was successfully launched. In the eyes of tens of millions of people, space hero Yang Liwei set off and opened a magnificent chapter in the space dream of the Chinese nation.
Fourth, peace in the stormy waves, space looking for knocks
After Shenzhou 5 successfully entered the intended orbit, Yang Liwei began to carry out the mission. However, it was not all smooth sailing. In space, he also encountered several dangers.
First and foremost, the spacecraft resonance problem. When Shenzhou 5 was more than 30 kilometers in the air, it suddenly shook violently. Yang Liwei felt as if his body was about to fall apart, and all his internal organs were suffering greatly.
"I thought I was going to die." Years later, recalling those 26 seconds, Yang Liwei still has palpitations.
After many arguments, the cause of this incident is the overload of the booster. Experts immediately adjusted the design to ensure that similar situations did not happen again.
However, at that moment, Yang Liwei did not panic. Relying on the determination he had cultivated over the years of flying fighter jets, he gritted his teeth and endured severe pain while carefully observing the changes in various data.
26 seconds is tantamount to torment for Yang Liwei. But it is precisely because he did not lose his mind in severe pain, but remained focused on analyzing the situation, which provided valuable clues for finding a solution afterwards.
His ability to think calmly and analyze judgment became the key to facing unexpected events.
After entering space, the discomfort caused by weightlessness also made Yang Liwei busy for a while. Staying calm and adjusting to his physical condition in extreme environments is also a great challenge for Yang Liwei.
At first, he felt that the sky was spinning, his limbs were weak, and he couldn't find his center of gravity at all. Yang Liwei forced himself to take a deep breath and tried to recall the repeated practice in the simulation cabin.
Gradually, he adapted to his new environment and regained a sense of control over his body. The complex operation in the space station has also become familiar with a lot of exercise. When the familiar feeling returned, Yang Liwei finally fully entered the state.
If liftoff resonance and adaptation to weightlessness are both physical tests, then the knock that appears next is a challenge to test Yang Liwei's psychological endurance.
Just as the task was going smoothly, a series of crisp "knocking" sounds suddenly reached Yang Liwei's ears. He checked the instrument for the first time, and there was no abnormality in the external environment. Where does this knock come from?
Yang Liwei listened repeatedly and confirmed that it was not tinnitus or hallucinations. During the next trip to space, such knocks appeared from time to time, filling him with confusion.
However, Yang Liwei did not panic. In his rich flight experience, he has also encountered many unexpected situations.
In the face of the unknown, rationality is particularly key. Yang Liwei took a deep breath to dispel the doubts in his heart. He reminded himself not to rush to conclusions, but to observe carefully and gather more evidence.
So, while completing the task, he carefully recorded the number of percussions, pitch and other information. This provides valuable clues for future research into the source of sound.
It can be said that the courage to face the unknown and remain calm is Yang Liwei's core quality, and it is also the spirit that every aerospace hero should have. Because of this, the mystery was solved 13 years later.
Fifth, where the knock on the door begins, experts have a lot of discussion
On October 16, 2003, Shenzhou 5 landed safely. Yang Liwei, who ended the mission, described the various situations in space orbit into a report and reported it to experts for study.
Among them, the most interesting to experts is the mysterious "knock". Space experts have been discussing this for 13 years.
At first, experts suspected that the sound produced by the micrometeoroid hitting the bulkhead. But after trial and error, Yang Liwei dismissed this speculation.
Later, astronauts heard similar sounds during orbital training, proving that this did not happen only on Shenzhou 5. Some experts speculate that aliens may be "knocking", but this statement is too far-fetched.
In the midst of speculation, experts have been unable to find a definitive explanation. After all, space is full of unknowns, and only continuous exploration can find the truth.
During this period, experts tried to restore the space environment at that time to find the source of the sound.
Some people used tools of different materials to knock on the bulkhead of astronauts, and asked Yang Liwei to judge the similarity of sounds; Someone built a decompression chamber to simulate the vacuum state of space and observe whether sound appeared; Others analyze the composition of the frequency of percussion sounds in an attempt to find out the patterns.
Unfortunately, these attempts ended in failure. A mysterious knock from space, seemingly deaf to experts on the ground.
It wasn't until 2013, during the Tiangong-1 mission, that astronauts heard this knock again. This finally ignited the thinking of experts.
It turns out that when a spacecraft undergoes a change in pressure in space, its shape undergoes a slight deformation. This "knock" is most likely the sound made when the metal structure is deformed!
Armed with this breakthrough idea, experts immediately began experimenting on the ground. They repeatedly observed the deformation of metal materials under strong and weak pressure, and recorded sound for comparative analysis.
After several rounds of experiments, experts finally confirmed that the deformation of the spacecraft caused by the pressure change was the knock that had long bothered them.
In 2016, the mystery that had plagued for 13 years finally came to light. The source of the sound is found, but the experts will not be satisfied with it. All scientific exploration continues.
epilogue
In 2003, China achieved its first manned spaceflight, which was an important milestone in the country's space industry.
Among them, Yang Liwei, the space hero who carried out the mission, played an important role. In the face of various unexpected difficulties and dangers, he became calm and calm, and successfully completed the mission to return to Earth.
Especially when he heard the knock on the door, Yang Liwei did not panic, but remained rational, laying the foundation for studying the mystery of sound. Because of this, the mystery was solved 13 years later.
It can be said that the courage to face the unknown and remain calm is Yang Liwei's core quality, and it is also the spirit that every aerospace hero should have.
Looking ahead, China's space journey is arduous and long. We will also face a lot of uncharted territory.