After 156 days at sea and a journey spanning more than 40,000 kilometers, the Chinese scientific research ship Tansuo-1 returned to Guangzhou City, south China's Guangdong Province, on Sunday with major deep-ocean discoveries.
The vessel carried the deep-sea manned submersible Fendouzhe (Striver), which completed 63 dives, including 50 deeper than 6,000 meters, during a groundbreaking Pacific expedition and conducted the first China-Chile joint crewed exploration of the Atacama Trench.
Scientists from six countries, namely China, Chile, Germany, Denmark, Canada and Spain, collected rare biological and geological samples and captured stunning high-definition footage from some of the deepest places on Earth.
Among the key discoveries was the first finding of an ecosystem supported by geological fluid in the sunless deep sea of the southern hemisphere, providing crucial evidence for the "global chemosynthetic life corridor" hypothesis.
The team also recorded a rich variety of hadal organisms, including at least three types of snailfish, and large numbers of benthic creatures, many of which are believed to be previously unknown species.
In addition, researchers identified seabed fault-rupture structures linked to historic major earthquakes, offering in-situ evidence for understanding how seismic activity shapes deep-sea landforms and affects marine habitats.
Chinese research vessel Tansuo-1 returns with major deep-sea discoveries
Chinese research vessel Tansuo-1 returns with major deep-sea discoveries
Chinese research vessel Tansuo-1 returns with major deep-sea discoveries
China is expected to add around 300 gigawatts of new wind and solar power capacity in 2026, with renewables continuing to drive the country’s green and low-carbon energy transition, according to the China Renewable Energy Development Report released on Friday.
The report shows that China’s newly installed renewable power generation capacity reached another record high in 2025, accounting for more than 60 percent of global additions.
The country’s total installed renewable energy capacity surpassed 2,337 gigawatts in 2025, while renewables accounted for 82.7 percent of newly installed power capacity, according to the report.
Newly installed distributed solar photovoltaic capacity exceeded 100 gigawatts for the second straight year, accompanied by marked improvements in regional power grid absorption and clean energy utilization.
China's electricity generation from renewable sources reached about 4,000 terawatt-hours. Both wind and photovoltaic power generation crossed the 1,000 terawatt-hours threshold, each contributing more than 10 percent to the country's total power output.
"In 2025, wind and solar power installations achieved leapfrog growth, with the cumulative installed capacity of wind and solar power historically surpassing that of thermal power, further accelerating the pace of power structure transformation. New business forms such as zero-carbon industrial parks, green power direct supply, wind-solar hydrogen production, and photovoltaic-based desert control accelerated their popularization, as clean energy gradually permeated various sectors of the economy and society," said Yi Yuechun, general manager of the China Renewable Energy Engineering Institute.
This year, China's new energy sector will continue following the core path that combines onshore and offshore development, centralized and distributed projects, multiple energy sources working together, and integrated growth. The country will accelerate the construction of renewable energy bases in deserts, the Gobi and other arid areas, while coordinating ecological governance. Offshore wind power projects will also be pushed forward in an orderly manner.
In addition to the expected growth in wind and solar power, China is planning to add more than 50 gigawatts of new grid-connected energy storage capacity in 2026.
"During the 15th Five-Year Plan period (2026-2030), China will prioritize the commencement of a series of deep-sea offshore wind power projects, steadily advance major hydropower projects, actively and orderly develop pumped storage hydropower, and accelerate the planning and construction of integrated wind-solar-hydro power bases along major river basins. The green electricity market will continue to be cultivated and expanded. By 2035, the share of non-fossil energy in China's total primary energy consumption is targeted to reach more than 30 percent, with the combined installed capacity of wind and solar power striving to reach 3,600 gigawatts," said Liu Deshun, chief engineer of the National Energy Administration.
China to add 300 GW of wind, solar power capacity in 2026: report
