Chinanews, Beijing, Nov. 23 ¨C The Chinese Academy of Social Sciences Earth Observing and Digital Geoscience Center was formally established in Beijing on Wednesday. With it, China can collect satellite data from 70% of the land in Asia, CCTV reported.

The Earth Observing and Digital Geoscience Center consists of a satellite remote sensing center, an aerospace remote sensing center, a space data center, and a geoscience lab. It mainly deals with the study of geospace information technologies, issues of great concern to China, and global hot issues.

Due to the limited number of ground receiving stations, China can currently receive data sent by over 10 remote sensing satellites. With the establishment of the Earth Observing and Digital Geoscience Center, China have two more ground receiving stations, one in Kashgar of Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region and one in Sanya of Hainan Province. This will greatly upgrade China’s space information technological levels.

Previously, China had only one ground receiving station set in Miyun, Beijing. With this station, China’s satellite data network covered only 80% of the nation’s territories. We could not receive satellite data in Tibet or Xinjiang and therefore we lacked related information in those areas, which might hamper our work in developing the west region. With the set up of the Earth Observing and Digital Geoscience Center, we can receive satellite data from 70% of the land in Asia now, said Guo Huadong, director of the Earth Observing and Digital Geoscience Center.

Chinanews, Beijing, Nov 23 ¨C The first international aerospace technological standards ever drafted by China, the “Data Processing on Satellites and Carrier Rockets Flying Environment through Remote Sensing”, will be published soon, the Guangming Daily reported.

The technological standards are made by China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation.

Since April 7, 1990, when China successfully sent the Asia No.1 satellite through Changzheng 3 carrier rocket, the Changzheng series of carrier rockets have successfully sent many commercial satellites for foreign countries. During these commercial launches, there were often cases when Chinese satellite launching company collected technological data with methods different from what were then being used by foreign satellite companies. Of them, the environmental conditions for carrier rockets to fly with effective loading capacity are regarded as an important standard for the satellite to link with carrier rockets. In the past, as Chinese and foreign companies used different methods to collect related data, discrepancies often occurred. This thus formed a barrier for the two sides.

In order to standardize and clarify the basic requirements in data collection and to further promote cooperation between China and foreign countries in aeronautics field, China proposed the “Data Processing on Satellites and Carrier Rockets Flying Environment through Remote Sensing” standards to ISO/TC20/SC14 organization in 1999. In 2000, the drafted standards were approved. The draft standardizes the basic requirements on data processing through remote sensing for the flying environment of satellites and carrier rockets. With these standards, the data collected from the two sides will become comparable. The standards will provide a useful tool for scientists to analyze the flying environment for carrier rockets. The standards will become a common practice to be observed by both China and other foreign companies in their cooperation in commercial satellite launching. It will lay a good foundation for futher international cooperation in aeronautics field.

Chinanews, Hangzhou, Nov. 23 ¨C According to Qianjiang Evening News, a latest survey by Zhejiang Provincial Forestry Bureau showed that there are 100 thousand wild boars in the province, an increase of 300% in 6 years.

Ding Liangdong, an official from the bureau, approved the survey. He said that wild boars have better living conditions today, and the number of their natural enemies like tiger has decreased in recent years.

Shen Xinrong, a 76-year-old hunter in Hangzhou, said that he had captured 4 wild boars this year. But he also worried that the increase of wild boars would make the region infested with rats, because wild boars eat snakes.

The Zhejiang provincial government started organizing people to hunt for wild boars in 2005, and nearly 4,000 wild boars have been captured in these two years.

Chinanews, Beijing, Nov. 22 ¨C Zhou Shengxian, head of State Enviromental Protection Administration, said recently that water quality of the Huai River had improved in 10 years of management.

Zhou said that the central government¡¯s policy to improve Huai River¡¯s water quality had been correct. He pointed out that stable and regular management could change the enviromental condition of the river.

In response to foreign media¡¯s doubt about improvement of the water quality of the river, and vice premier Zeng Peiyan pointed out that China had invested 19.3 billion yuan on improving Huai River¡¯s water quality. Zhou Shengxian launched an investigation himself on Huai River¡¯s tributaries in Henan Province.

He stressed that a long period should be needed to make the water quality of the river become better.

Chinanews, Zhengzhou, Nov. 22 ¨C An official from Zhengzhou¡¯s wetland near the Yellow River said on last Saturday that there were thousands of national-protected birds in the region. He said that more and more migratory birds had come the wetland, so that their total number had reached 300 thousand.

Some 90 swans also emerged in the wetland on Nov. 20. Official said that swans used to be seen in Sanmenxia, Henan Province. This was the first time that swans appeared in Zhengzhou, in November.

The wetland occupies an area of 38 thousand sq km, where many national-protected animals now living there. Because grass resources are abandunt in the region, more and more migratory birds from Siberia and China¡¯s north choose to make their homes here.

Chinanews, Shanghai, Nov. 21 ¨C The “Shenzhou 7″ might carry three astronauts aboard and it will possibly be launched in October next year. By then, astronauts will conduct a space walk, probably with a belt, said Pang Zhihao, a research fellow at the China Academy of Space Technology, the Oriental Morning Post reported.

¡°The launch can be described in two words ¡®thrilling¡¯ and ¡®exciting¡¯. Chinese public can see every detail of the launching process with televised live broadcast,¡± Pang said.

¡°This will be the first time for Chinese astronauts to conduct a space walk. So it will be a very exciting event,¡± he said.

Normally, astronauts can conduct a space walk with or without a belt. If they tie a belt, the trip will be safer for them and they can get more oxygen and communicate with researchers on earth with the belt, Pang noted.

¡°As this will be the first time for Chinese astronauts to conduct a space walk, they will probably tie a belt in carrying out the mission,¡± Pang added.