With another round of extravehicular activity on the Chinese Tiangong space station scheduled soon, its mechanical arms installed are in focus, and space experts expect them to play a vital role in the process.
Members of the Shenzhou-19 crew aboard China's orbiting space station on Friday completed their mission's third series of extravehicular activities, according to the China Manned Space Agency.
Weighing 0.74 tons, the two mechanical arms in China's space station can bear 25 tons. Such capacity allows them to support various tasks for astronauts, from spacewalk and maintenance to payload transport, according to Yang Yuguang, president of the International Astronautical Federation’s Space Transportation Committee.
"The robotic arm can play a very important role in our extravehicular activities. Whether it is the 10-meter-long big arm, the 5-meter-long small arm, or their combined mechanical arm in the space station, they all can help astronauts to move quickly from one location to another that is far away. Also, in this process, astronauts can carry heavy equipment which is difficult to move for them to handle and install. This will greatly improve efficiency and save astronauts' physical strength," said Yang.
Apart from colossal strength, these mechanical arms are also quite agile like human arms. They have shoulder, elbow, and wrist joints, which are easy to maneuver.
Mechanical arms vital for extravehicular activity: space expert
President of the Republic of Korea (ROK) Lee Jae Myung has expressed his hope that his upcoming visit to China will help eliminate past misunderstandings and issues, underscoring the importance of ties between the two countries.
At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, Lee will pay a state visit to China from Jan 4 to 7. It will be Lee's first visit to China since he took office.
In an interview with China Media Group (CMG) in Seoul on Wednesday, Lee acknowledged the existing misunderstandings and issues between the two countries, noting that addressing these issues is a key goal of his visit.
"The current international landscape is turbulent, with escalating issues among various countries. In this context, the relationship between the Republic of Korea and China holds significant importance for us. the ROK and China are deeply interconnected in many areas, including history, economy, geopolitics, politics and security. Northeast Asia's peace, stability, mutual respect, and common prosperity are crucial for both countries," said Lee.
"Admittedly, there have been some misunderstandings and issues between the ROK and China, which have hindered the development of bilateral relations to some extent. Therefore, the purpose of my upcoming visit to China is to minimize or eliminate these past issues, foster a leap in our bilateral relations to a new level, and solidify the ROK and China as partners that mutually support each other's development," he said.
ROK President hopes to reduce misunderstandings with China during upcoming visit
