[News Essay] The Meaning and Mission of Scholars Becoming Astronauts | Astronauts | Scholars
News Essay
Author: Chen Cheng
On May 30th, the launch mission of the Shenzhou-16 manned spacecraft was a complete success, and the astronaut crew has successfully entered the Chinese space station. As the first manned flight mission since the completion of China's space station, the most eye-catching feature of this mission is the composition of the crew of the Shenzhou-16 spacecraft.
The crew of Shenzhou 16 consists of three astronauts: Jing Haipeng, Zhu Yangzhu, and Guihaichao. Since the announcement of the list, netizens have been paying attention to the scholar astronaut Gui Haichao, who is only 36 years old and still wearing glasses. As a payload expert and professor at Beihang University, the emergence of Guihai Tide has broken people's previous understanding of the composition of astronauts, and also means that China's space station has truly entered the stage of application and development, and some people's in orbit space science research has truly begun to enter the main topic. This is a great progress.
The Chinese space station is also the National Space Laboratory of China, and the laboratory must have professional researchers. The completion of China's space station construction has entered the right track, indicating that there will be an urgent need to carry out a larger number of space science experiments. To ensure the smooth conduct of space experiments, it is also necessary to ensure the stable operation of the space station. If these tasks are all completed by astronauts who have been trained as Air Force pilots, the pressure will be enormous, so more professional support is needed.
People often say that there is a specialization in the craft industry. Currently, the personnel of another space station in orbit in space, the International Space Station, are typically composed of a commander, pilot, flight engineer, and mission expert. The commander and pilot are mostly Air Force pilots, flight engineers are mostly professional astronauts, and mission experts need to be composed of corresponding scholars based on specific stage loads and research projects. This combination can maximize the assurance of space experiments and stable operation of the space station.
The Chinese space station has entered the stage of application and development, and the number and requirements of various tasks will obviously be much higher than the construction stage. Drawing on existing international experience, ensuring the smooth and orderly development of China's space station also requires enriching the composition of astronaut types, with professionals from various fields corresponding to each other, and undertaking relevant work. As a practice, for the first time, the Chinese astronaut crew for this "spaceflight" includes three types of astronauts: "space pilot, space flight engineer, and payload expert.". In the third batch of astronauts in China, in addition to 7 space pilots, there are also 7 flight engineers and 4 payload experts. This change is in line with the new needs of China's manned spaceflight industry and is also a necessary process of continuously aligning with international standards.
Another new face in this mission, Zhu Yangzhu, who serves as a space flight engineer, also enriches the composition of astronauts. Flight engineers are also an indispensable part of space station operations. As the first professional astronauts in China to have a non pilot background, Zhu Yangzhu and Gui Haichao both hold the status of university teachers. Their responsibility is to ensure the stable, efficient, and long-term safe operation of the space station. Therefore, the "flying" of Zhu Yangzhu and Guihaichao was not a coincidence, but an inevitable measure in line with the development of space station applications and scientific research.
The promotion of human society's exploration of the universe cannot be achieved without aerospace pilots, as well as non pilot astronauts who undertake various types of missions. It is possible for ordinary people to become astronauts, which gives all ordinary people with space dreams an expectation. As long as one can possess outstanding abilities and achievements, and pass the corresponding standard assessment for astronauts in terms of physical fitness, "flying" is no longer an unattainable dream.
Guangming Daily
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