On October 26, 2020, a “system reminder, China has rejected your friend request.” The hot comment on Weibo was posted on the hot search, and the message “China’s space station shuts out the United States” was followed by “China’s application for international membership.” The hatred of the space station being rejected by the United States is not related. Netizens speculated that they did not cooperate in order to "liberate". In fact, it was because the US team participated in the declared project that did not meet the scientific value and technical standards.

In June last year, the China Manned Space Engineering Office and the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs jointly announced that 9 projects from 17 countries and 23 entities were successfully selected as the first batch of scientific experiment projects of the China Space Station. This is China’s manned space project. The first large-scale international cooperation through the United Nations.

At that time, I was asked if "Did you exclude projects from the United States when selecting projects?" Zhou Jianping, the chief designer of China's manned space engineering, said bluntly: "We did not exclude any countries, nor did we limit any scope. There are US teams participating in the declared projects. In terms of scientific value and technical considerations, the American project did not meet the required standards."

According to Lin Xiqiang, deputy director of the China Manned Space Engineering Office and spokesperson for manned space engineering, my country has a set of strict selection criteria for selecting projects for space stations.

First, it must comply with the UN's basic principles of peaceful use of outer space.

Second, the scientific significance of the project should be prominent, which can greatly promote the progress of related science and technology fields, or can effectively promote the development of space science and technology and the improvement of scientific research capabilities of the country where the project is applied.

Third, the technical plan must be reasonable and feasible, have good engineering feasibility, and not pose a threat to the space station.

Finally, be able to bear the project research and development funds on their own.

Therefore, each selected project must fully meet the above requirements in order to board the Chinese Space Station car.

You must know that China's space station will not only refuse project applications without reason, but also welcome space cooperation with all countries including the United States. Among them, developing countries are especially encouraged to join this "space journey."

As early as March 2016, the China Manned Space Engineering Office and the United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs signed the "Memorandum of Understanding on the Use of the Chinese Space Station for International Cooperation", agreeing to use the Chinese Space Station to provide scientific experiment opportunities for countries and provide astronauts from other countries in the future Or load specialists provide on-orbit flight opportunities.

When talking about the prospects of Sino-US space cooperation, Lin Xiqiang reiterated that China is willing to carry out cooperation and exchanges in the field of manned spaceflight with all countries and regions in the world that aim at the peaceful use of outer space.

"Unfortunately, the relevant bill issued by the US Congress prohibits the US from cooperating with us in the space field, which has seriously hindered the normal development of Sino-US space exchanges and cooperation. As long as the United States cancels the non-constructive bill, China and the United States will be in the manned space field There are broad prospects for cooperation."

It is worth noting that the China Space Station will provide project applicants with free uplink launch and space station operation opportunities, as well as support services such as measurement, control, and recovery, and the research and development funds need to be borne by the project applicant.

China has invested so much manpower and financial resources to build the space station, allowing other countries to use our place to do experiments without any money. Just look at this mindset.

In this regard, Zhou Jianping, chief designer of China's manned space project, explained that this is a mutually beneficial cooperation and the results can be shared. Many scientific researches are geared towards important scientific issues, not for commercial purposes. A European team proposed to study the mechanism of tumor cell growth in space, which is related to human health.

This comparison is reminiscent of the rumors that "China was turned away by the International Space Station."

According to CCTV's "Face to Face" program, in the 1990s, 16 countries, led by the United States and Russia, including Canada, Japan, Brazil, and ESA, participated in the development of the International Space Station. When planning the construction, China once applied to join but was rejected.

This incident once became the knot of many Chinese people.

Recalling that year, Zhou Jianping said that China was very willing to participate in international cooperation, but in terms of space technology, countries like the United States did not allow cooperation with China. At that time, China's aerospace technology was still far behind the present. In international cooperation, only those with strength have the right to speak.

However, there are still doubts about whether "rejected to join the International Space Station" actually exists.

In 2017, when Zhu Zongpeng, chief designer of Tiangong No. 2 of the Fifth Academy of Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation participated in CCTV's "Let's Talk" program, when asked "whether the International Space Station has refused China to join", he clearly gave a "no" answer.

According to Zhu Zongpeng, not only has China never been rejected, it has not actually applied. China's manned spaceflight has always adhered to independence and has formulated a three-step strategy to build the Chinese own space station.

This three-step walk has now achieved two steps.

The first step is to realize the return of astronauts from heaven to earth, and Shenzhou 1 to 6 have been realized;

The second step is to make a comprehensive breakthrough in the development of the core technologies of the space station, such as astronauts walking out of the cabin, space rendezvous and docking, space laboratory, cargo supply, multi-person long-term survival, Tiangong-2, Shenzhou-11, and Tianzhou-1 were successfully completed ；

The third step, the ultimate goal, is to build a large-scale long-term manned space station.

At present, the development and construction of China's space station is proceeding in an orderly manner, and it is planned to be completed and put into use around 2022.

In May of this year, the Long March 5B carrier rocket carried a new generation of manned spacecraft test ship and ignited at the Wenchang Space Launch Site in China. The first flight mission was a complete success, laying an important foundation for the construction of the Chinese space station in orbit.

It is estimated that from 2021 to 2022, my country plans to complete the on-orbit construction of the Chinese space station through 11 missions; after that, high-density missions will be implemented, astronauts will stay in orbit for a long time, and larger-scale space science will also be carried out. Experiments and technical trials.

It is foreseeable that if the International Space Station does not extend its service life, it is likely to be decommissioned in 2024. In other words, in the future, the Chinese space station may be the only space station in the world.

China Aerospace has always been adhering to the concept of equality and mutual benefit, peaceful use, and inclusive development to carry out international cooperation, continue to open up follow-up exploration missions, and work with countries in a more active and constructive manner to jointly promote the realization of the vision of a community with a shared future in outer space. In any case, China's manned spaceflight has always carried out international exchanges and cooperation with an open attitude, and all countries are welcome to join the "circle of friends" of China's manned spaceflight cooperation.Editor/Luo Wentao