The main structure of a mega fully steerable radio telescope was capped in northwest China's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region on Sunday, marking another step forward in the construction of the major scientific research infrastructure project in the country.
Located in the foothills of the Tianahan Mountains in Qitai County, the telescope will feature a single dish measuring 110 meters in diameter and weigh more than 6,000 tons. The fully steerable dish will allow the telescope to observe 75 percent of celestial bodies in the sky.
Construction on the 110-meter-diameter telescope started in September 2022 and is expected to be completed in 2028.
The next phase of the construction will involve equipment installation and system testing.
China is also building another fully steerable radio telescope with a diameter of 120 meters, so far the world's largest, in northeast China's Jilin Province.
The Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia, the United States, currently holds the title as the world's largest operational fully steerable radio telescope, with its dish measuring 100 meters by 110 meters.
Compared with fixed radio telescopes of the same size, fully steerable radio telescopes can observe a larger part of the sky.
Main structure of under-construction mega radio telescope capped in Xinjiang
China's natural gas production is projected to reach 300 billion cubic meters by 2030, according to a development report released in Beijing.
The report, covering the development of China's oil and gas industry during the country's 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021–2025), said proven geological reserves rose by 7 billion tons of oil and 7 trillion cubic meters of gas, up 43 percent and 40 percent respectively from the previous five-year period. Oil and gas production hit record highs.
"The oil output is likely to reach between 215 and 216 million tons this year. Natural gas has seen major growth during the 14th Five-Year Plan period (2021–2025), with annual domestic output rising by nearly 13 billion cubic meters. In the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030), we expect annual increases of more than 10 billion cubic meters, reaching 300 billion cubic meters around 2030," said Wu Mouyuan, deputy director of the Economics and Technology Research Institute of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC).
The report forecast that China's energy structure will feature less coal, stable oil and gas, and rising non-fossil fuels over the next decade.
By 2060, fossil fuels are expected to account for 23 percent of the energy mix, hydropower and nuclear 19 percent, wind 25 percent, and solar 30 percent, the report said.
"In the next five years, through the integrated development of fossil energy and renewables, we will achieve a heathy, stable, and resilient energy system. Clean energy will continue to grow rapidly. More than 90 percent of renewable energy will be consumed via electricity, so the electrification at end-use sectors is a key direction of transformation in the future," said Wu.
With the rapid growth of artificial intelligence and new high-energy industries, China's power demand will exceed 20 trillion kilowatt hours by 2060, double the 2025 level. Electrification at end-use sectors is expected to reach 62 percent, rising by nearly one percentage point annually, the report projected.
China to see gas output hitting 300 bcm by 2030: report
