Tiangong class inspires Hong Kong, Macao students

A live-broadcast class given on Wednesday by the in-orbit Shenzhou XXIII crew, including Lai Ka-ying, the first astronaut from Hong Kong to travel into space, ignited a passion among students in the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions for exploring space and inspired them to contribute to national aerospace exploration in the future.

The 90-minute class, a special session for Hong Kong and Macao students under the Tiangong Class series, was beamed from China's Tiangong space station to the students starting at 9:50 am local time.

Three astronauts — Lai, the mission's payload specialist, commander Zhu Yangzhu and pilot Zhang Zhiyuan — shared their knowledge and experiences with the students. They demonstrated several phenomena in a zero-gravity environment, including using a towel-covered table tennis paddle to strike a water droplet, which bounced off the towel just like a ping-pong ball.

The astronauts also explained the space station's living facilities and food supplies.

Education authorities in Hong Kong and Macao encouraged all local primary and secondary schools to arrange for students and teachers to watch the broadcast from their own classrooms.

Students at Lai's alma mater, Tsuen Wan Public Ho Chuen Yiu Memorial College, watched the class in a specially designated space, and were joined by 60 students and educators from 15 Macao schools.

Addressing the audience gathered at the school, Hong Kong SAR Chief Executive John Lee Ka-chiu said the class gave Hong Kong and Macao students the opportunity to interact with astronauts aboard Tiangong and to appreciate the nation's aerospace achievements and ambitions.

Lee said that Lai, who was born and raised in Hong Kong, has shown that the space dream is never out of reach.

Hong Kong people can also contribute to the nation's aerospace endeavors, he said, adding that scientists in Hong Kong have provided equipment and technical support for the country's lunar, Martian and other space exploration missions.

Eight students — six from Hong Kong and two from Macao — asked the three astronauts questions during the real-time dialogue session.

A Hong Kong primary school student asked what kind of preparations astronauts make before a spacewalk and what psychological and physiological experiences they undergo during extravehicular activities.

Zhu said the crewmembers rehearse with equipment, conduct drills, examine spacesuits and monitor their physical condition before a spacewalk. Although spacewalks are physically grueling, he added, looking out into space gives the astronauts a real sense of what exploring the universe is all about.

Doris Cheong Weng-man, from Macao's Sacred Heart Canossian College, English Section, asked what the astronauts considered to be the most profound challenges they faced during training. Lai said the most memorable ones included desert survival training, sleep deprivation training and a six-day cave training session.

"The training posed significant physical and psychological challenges, and made me realize the importance of discipline and teamwork," she added.

At Pui Kiu Middle School in Hong Kong, more than 100 students gathered to watch the class. In 2003, China's first in-orbit astronaut, Yang Liwei, planted an oak tree at the school during his visit to the Hong Kong SAR.

Kwan See-heng, a 10th-grade student, said that this was the first time he had witnessed a class presented via a live question-and-answer session.

"As a student of science, I hope to get involved in scientific research and development, and to contribute to space technologies if given the chance," Kwan said.

William Xu, Li Xiang and Flora Ni contributed to this story.

atlasshao@chinadailyhk.com