Villages in Haining City, east China's Zhejiang Province, are riding the wave of Qiantang River's tidal bore tourism, launching entertainment and leisure activities to attract visitors and boost local business.
The Qiantang River is known for the world's largest tidal bore. The tides usually reach their peak on the 18th day of the eighth lunar month.
Recently, Haining has seen an influx of tourists eager to witness the breathtaking sight of the peak tides. While many choose the traditional method of watching from the shore, Jianshan Village has introduced a thrilling alternative --paragliding.
"When the tide comes in, our tourist numbers surge, particularly from Shanghai and Hangzhou. During peak times, we can handle around 200 flights daily. It's not just our flying base that attracts more visitors; many nearby water activities also experience a surge in tourists," said Jiang Kai, a coach at the paraglider base.
In Jianshan Village, water sports such as motorboating and power surfing have become popular among adventure enthusiasts from surrounding areas.
"I drove an hour from Hangzhou just to experience this. It's incredibly thrilling and full of fun," said Jiang Xiaojie, a tourist.
In Haichao Village, located at one of the most popular tide-watching locations, a charming riverside cafe has emerged as a key attraction.
"It's very beautiful here. Sitting here puts me in a very relaxed state, and I feel so close to nature," said Zhao Mengyi, a tourist.
In addition, tourists can explore local farms and orchards, indulging in delicious regional cuisines after enjoying the spectacular tidal bores.
The tidal bore is mainly caused by the gravitational pull of the moon. The centrifugal force produced by the rotation of the Earth and the trumpet shape of the Hangzhou Bay in Zhejiang makes it easy for the tide to come in, but difficult to ebb, thus giving rise to the largest tidal bore.
Tidal bore tourism surges in east China city as villages launch leisure attractions
Major breakthroughs by Chinese scientists have laid the foundation for a future where space-based solar power stations are capable of wirelessly transmitting energy to Earth and spacecraft, though significant engineering problems remain.
A research team from Xidian University in northwest China's Shaanxi Province has made significant progress on the Sun Chasing project, or "Zhuri" in Chinese. The team has developed a ground-based test system for wireless power transmission that can charge multiple moving targets at the same time.
In recent tests, the system achieved a wireless power transmission efficiency of 20.8 percent from direct current to direct current over a distance of 100 meters. It delivered 1,180 watts of power. The team has also built a wireless charging system for drones. In a test, a drone flying at 30 kilometers per hour was able to receive 143 watts of stable power from 30 meters away.
A space solar power station works exactly as its name suggests: a huge array of solar panels placed in orbit. It would collect sunlight in space, where the sun always shines, and then convert that energy into microwaves or lasers to beam down to Earth or directly to satellites and spacecraft. This could address two significant issues: supplying uninterrupted power for space missions and alleviating energy shortages on the ground.
"The construction of space solar power stations could become a major undertaking in the future. One potential benefit is access to a virtually unlimited power supply. Because energy can be collected continuously in space 24 hours a day, electricity could be supplied on an uninterrupted basis," said Fan Guanheng, an associate professor at the School of Mechano-Electronic Engineering at Xidian University.
"Secondly, it could reduce our dependence on fossil fuels, thereby lowering carbon emissions and helping protect the environment. Thirdly, it could support the development of charging infrastructure in space and enable wireless microwave charging for spacecraft, changing the way power is supplied to space vehicles," the professor added.
In 2018, the research team launched the first phase of the Sun Chasing project to build a ground test system. By June 2022, they had completed the world's first full-link, full-system ground validation system for a space solar power station. Now, the team has moved to phase two. The goal now is to solve the challenges of generating high power in space and transmitting it efficiently over long distances.
According to Duan Baoyan, an expert at Xidian University and an academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering, recent breakthroughs include improving the efficiency of solar energy collection and conversion, increasing the precision of microwave beam control to reduce energy loss, and making the transmitting and receiving antennas smaller and lighter, which is critical for space application.
The team has also solved the problem of how to power multiple moving targets at once using a single transmitter. This means that in the future, one space power station could potentially supply electricity to several satellites or ground vehicles at the same time, Duan said.
Despite the advances in ground-based validation, a series of technical challenges must still be overcome before the technology can be deployed in space.
"The first issue that needs to be addressed is the adaptability of components to the space environment, as conditions in space are completely different from those on Earth, including radiation exposure and extreme temperatures. Another challenge involves the deployment and retraction design of transmitting and receiving antennas. We also need to develop thermal management systems to cope with extreme temperatures and temperature fluctuations in space. These are all areas where further breakthroughs are needed," said Qian Sihao, an associate professor at the School of Mechano-Electronic Engineering at Xidian University.
"We have now completed the development and validation of a ground-based test system, and our next step is to carry out in-orbit wireless microwave power transmission," Fan said.
With ground validation complete, the team now turns its attention to overcoming the harsh realities of space, aiming to demonstrate in-orbit wireless power transmission and bring the vision of orbital solar energy closer to reality.
Space-to-earth solar power moves closer to reality although hurdles remain: scientists
