Tiangong space station, ground jointly hold fifth youth art exhibition

An art exhibition was held simultaneously on Wednesday aboard China's Tiangong space station orbiting about 400 kilometers above Earth, and at the Capital Museum in Beijing, showcasing teenagers' imaginative visions of the future and their deep respect for role models nationwide.

The event launched its call for entries in July 2025, selecting 80 paintings from a pool of over 15,000 submissions from teens across the country. On October 31, the selected works were sent to the Chinese space station aboard the Shenzhou-21 crewed spacecraft.

It is the fifth painting exhibition held aboard the Tiangong space station.

The artworks frequently highlight figures from China's space industry chasing the space dream, high-speed rail workers striving for excellence, and firefighters braving danger. The young creators honored pioneering role models through their paintings which illustrate their understanding of how personal growth integrates with national development.

The Shenzhou-21 crew members, comprised of mission commander Zhang Lu and astronauts Wu Fei and Zhang Hongzhang, have displayed and introduced the teenagers' artworks during their mission aboard the space station.

"'Role Models in My Heart' is the theme of this exhibition. From the paintings, we deeply feel the teenagers' respect for pioneering role models lying beneath their brushstrokes, which shines brighter than stars and stretches wider than the sky," said a crew member of the Shenzhou-21 mission.

Meanwhile, on the ground, the Capital Museum hosted an interactive event featuring representatives from the aerospace, high-speed rail, and firefighting sectors. These role models engaged with young visitors, sharing stories of how they are dedicated to and shoulder the responsibility in their respective fields.

"Seeing the children's paintings about high-speed railway, which are full of imaginative depictions and hopes for the future development of China's high-speed rail, is a great inspiration to us," said Weng Shengyuan from the Institute of Computing Technologies of the China Academy of Railway Sciences Corporation Limited.

"I can't go to space yet, but my painting went to space in my place. I feel very honored. My painting is about winning glory for the country, depicting athletes in a competition. Today we're on the school playground; in the future, we will make breakthroughs in various other fields both in space and on the ground, daring to tackle challenges and win glory for our country," said Li Chongjing, a student participating in the event.

The exhibition at the Capital Museum brings together works displayed in all the five editions of the exhibition, as the first comprehensive showcase of all collections of the event. The exhibition will run through May 24.

Tiangong space station, ground jointly hold fifth youth art exhibition

Tiangong space station, ground jointly hold fifth youth art exhibition

The Polish government has recently rolled out a series of emergency measures to cushion the impact of energy costs on households in light of rising oil prices and increasing inflation risks.

Amid escalating tensions in the Middle East, international crude oil prices have jumped, pushing fuel prices in Poland up by more than 30 percent over the past month. Starting Tuesday, the Polish government began implementing a package of measures aimed at reducing fuel costs. These include lowering the value-added tax on fuel, cutting excise duties to the minimum level permitted under the European Union (EU) regulations, and cracking down on price gouging to maintain market stability.

Notably, gas stations in Poland have seen an increase in customers following the price cuts. Still, many residents believed the reduction is only temporary and that prices will likely rise again in the future.

"Even though the government has lowered prices, they are still high. I think the price cut might last for a while, but it's hard to say how long. I think this is just the beginning and the prices will rise in the future," said Arkadiusz, a local resident.

Polish economist Tomasz Bieliński said that it remains unclear how long the government can sustain these policies, and that rising energy prices are now transmitting pressure to core areas of the macroeconomy. In his view, if oil prices continue to climb, the European Central Bank and other central banks across the EU may be forced to adjust their monetary policies.

"Interest rates were actually reduced in most of the central banks in Europe. But, this reduction will probably stop, because we have rising prices of pretty much everything on the horizon," he said.

Poland unveils measures to ease pain of soaring oil prices