Incredible facts
Chinese astronomers report that they have begun to use special search equipment in Antarctica… to find Earth-like planets on which life could be detected. What's the connection, you ask?
The fact is that at the beginning of the year, the Chinese installed the first of the planned three telescopes in Antarctica. The equipment is located at the highest altitude in Antarctica. Chinese astronomers are so eager to get down to business that they don't seem to doubt the event's success at all!
To obtain data from their equipment and control the first Antarctic telescope installed in the most severe conditions on the planet, the Chinese use satellite communications, which, however, provides they have only a minimum of information so far.
“We'll send people there next spring to extract the data they need. I hope we will find candidates for this mission. It is still difficult to say exactly how many people we will need for this job, but I think at least ten,” says Wong Lifeng, head of the Chinese Center for Antarctic Astronomy.
Chinese scientists are also planning to set up an observatory in Antarctica to make their research more intensive and their search for habitable planets more actively. Wong believes that planets like this probably exist in our galaxy, thousands of light years away.
According to the scientist, Antarctica has the best conditions on Earth for organizing an astronomical observatory. Among the factors conducive to this work, Wong noted the flat surface of Antarctica, the transparent atmosphere and weak air turbulence. “The telescopes installed here will allow us to obtain the most accurate information from space,” the scientist believes.