In another landmark achievement for the country’s young space program, China has officially deployed the world’s first lobster-eye telescope into orbit. Known as the ‘Einstein Probe’, the advanced satellite observatory can detect far-off cosmic phenomena, including black holes and neutron stars. A Long March 2C liquid fuel rocket successfully launched the Einstein Probe from the…
Chinese start-up, Betavolt New Energy Technology, has revealed a nuclear battery powerful enough to charge your smartphone for fifty years. When the coin-sized power bank enters production, it will become the world’s first mass-produced atomic battery. Measuring just 15 millimetres squared and 5 millimetres high, the tiny three-volt battery has 100 microwatts of power, putting…
China’s pursuit to phase out fossil fuel-powered energy took another step forward, this time with what is being described as the world’s largest high-altitude wind farm. Set 4 650 metres above sea level in the frozen town of Nagqu on the Tibetan Plateau, the 25-turbine facility produces enough clean electricity to power over half a…
It sounds like alchemy, but Chinese researchers have developed a method that uses methanol to convert coal into protein for animal feed. The breakthrough has the scientific community hopeful the low-cost source of protein could become an alternative source of nutrition for animals as food prices worldwide continue to increase. Population growth, particularly in underdeveloped…
Test runs for the world’s largest coal-to-ethanol conversion plant have commenced. Chinese authorities have announced that the site has a reported output of an estimated 600 000 tonnes per year, making it the only industrial-level facility of its kind. Ethanol is traditionally synthesised from agricultural crops like corn, sugar and cassava but the new plant,…
A group of immunologists from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) have reportedly developed a “super-small” inhalable vaccine that could provide better protection against viral infections than conventional injectable vaccines. A single dose of the aerosol-propelled drug delivers microscopic 2.8 micron-thick particles that produced a sustained immune response in several lab subjects, including mice, hamsters…
Chinese roboticists from Beijing’s prestigious Beihang University have created a flexible robotic appendage capable of mimicking the movements of an octopus’s arm. The research team believes the breakthrough design marks a significant step in soft robotics and human-robot interaction. The device, which has been named an electronics-integrated soft robotic octopus arm (E-SOAM) has the agility…
Chinese state-run media has announced the launch of what it describes as the world’s deepest laboratory. Located in the country’s mountainous Sichuan province, the subterranean facility is more than 2 400 metres underground. After three years of extensive expansions by Tsinghua University and Yalong River Hydropower Development Company, the China Jinping Underground Laboratory’s remote location…
Chinese authorities have announced the initial completion of the country’s long-awaited high-orbit satellite communications network. In what is being touted as a potential competitor to Elon Musk’s Starlink internet constellation, the Chinese equivalent promises to offer high-speed internet services to the country’s more than 1.4 billion inhabitants. The satellite communications network would provide services to…
Chinese agronomists and engineers from the Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences Institute of Urban Agriculture (IUA) have recently completed the world’s first artificial intelligence powered 20-story vertical farm. The unmanned plant factory based in Chengdu, Sichuan province, is considered a breakthrough for a country with persistent food security concerns and unpredictable weather conditions. China’s 2022…