China has issued a firm warning against repeated foreign provocations and encroachments in the South China Sea, as its military carried out swift and coordinated operations to defend national sovereignty and maritime rights.
The latest incidents included joint U.S.-Philippine military exercises near the Huangyan Island, in response to which the Chinese People's Liberation Army Southern Theater Command and China Costa Guard have conducted patrols and law enforcement missions in the same area, and the expulsion of Dutch frigate De Ruyter which illegally intruded into China's territorial waters around Xisha Islands.
The Dutch frigate even sent out a helicopter in Chinese airspace, prompting a high-level PLA response.
Chinese Navy ships 631 and 626 closely tracked and drove away the Dutch warship at short range, while ship 553 issued warnings to the Dutch NH90 helicopter. Fighter jets armed with PL-10 air-to-air missiles were also dispatched to enforce the expulsion.
"This expulsion operation was totally at a different level compared with the previous ones. If active electronic jamming was used, the expelled vessel would have its communications, data links, and radar systems rendered blind and deaf, severely affecting their navigation and actions, leaving the ship's commanders and crew in a state of extreme fear. The Netherlands is a repeat offender. It previously conducted so-called 'freedom of navigation' transits and provocations near the Taiwan Strait. This time, not only did they conduct operations in the South China Sea, they even sent out a helicopter, which is a provocation even more egregious in nature. The Dutch military should reflect on the actual impact of its actions," said Du Wenlong, military expert and commentator.
"Secondly, this is a serious violation of China's sovereignty, unlike those previous provocations that stayed in the 'gray zone.' Once a navigation or flight, especially involving the use of a helicopter, was conducted in China's territorial waters or airspace, it would be considered a dangerous maneuver. The Chinese military has every right to take all necessary measures to effectively deter such actions," Du said.
Speaking at a press conference in Beijing on May 28, Chinese Defense Ministry Spokesman Jiang Bin urged The Netherlands to immediately halt its risky and provocative maneuvers, and called on all foreign forces to strictly manage their frontline operations to prevent possible maritime or aerial incidents.
Chinese military responds forcefully to foreign maritime provocations
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
