Eyeing the heavens

The vast telescope is tucked away in the karst hills of China’s remote southwest province of Guizhou. The 1.2-billion renminbi project has been in the pipeline for more than a decade, and took five years to construct.
A behemoth in size, FAST comprises 4,450 movable panels and has a total diameter of 500 metres.
One of the project scientists stated that if the dish was filled with wine, each one of the world’s 7 billion people could fill five bottles. A fascinating – and novel way of visualising the size of this enormous scientific instrument!
FAST’s nickname Tianyan – meaning the Eye of Heaven is an apt name for a telescope that can scan multiple parts of the sky at once.
Since FAST achieved ‘first light’ (a telescope’s first use) in September it has been searching large portions of space for hidden galaxies in the distant universe in an attempt to discover the laws of the development of the universe.
The construction of FAST is by no means China’s first foray into space exploration. Space exploration has been a priority for Chinese President Xi Jinping, who is placing emphasis on China’s capabilities as a world leader in science, and as a powerful influencer.
In 2013, China’s Yu Tu (Jade Rabbit) space rover landed on the moon to analyse its mineral wealth.
A source of major national pride with a connection to Chinese traditions and mythology – Yu Tu represented the rabbit borne to the moon by the goddess Chang’e.
A year later, Thailand was granted access to China’s highly advanced Beidou navigation satellite (also known as Compass) which it uses for disaster relief and environmental monitoring.
China’s strength in space will be critical for protecting territory, sovereignty, and communications systems in the future.
China began to develop its own modular space station after the US Congress prohibited it from accessing the International Space Station (ISS) in 2011. Although the space station project has since experienced teething problems, this is a good example of China choosing to develop its own standards when faced with adversity.
China also plans to launch an unmanned probe to Mars in 2020, and to put a person on the moon before 2036.
Although this is two decades away, China’s burgeoning space programme is proof of its ambitions to be a scientific leader, and demonstrates its intention to claim its place as a global superpower.