"Why you want to be a taikonaut?" "Did you miss your families?" "Is there anything you want to improve after the mission of Shenzhou VI?" ...
The members of Delegation of Shenzhou VI Manned Space Mission were asked one question after another when they met Hong Kong students from middle and primary schools Tuesday afternoon.
Tuesday is the third day of the delegation's visit to Hong Kong after the Chinese taikonauts successfully accomplished their second space mission in October.
The space industry of China has made another big progress by sending two more taikonauts, Fei Junlong and Nie Haisheng, in the space for five days since Yang Liwei, the first Chinese taikonaut was sent to the space two years ago.
Meeting with Hong Kong students is an important part of the delegation's schedule because the big progress in China's space industry has set off a whirl of space science among young people in Hong Kong.
Nie and Fei were greeted with enthusiasm when they appeared on the stage of the Elizabeth Stadium. Thousands of students from almost 400 middle and primary schools were eager to have their questions answered by the two taikonauts.
"There are many other careers, why do you want to be an astronaut?" "Are you going to improve Shenzhou VII after the mission of Shenzhou VI?" "Do you plan to explore the moon?" The students asked questions one after another.
"Have you seen the Great Wall when you were in the space?" a small girl from a middle school asked, curiously.
"Unfortunately, I haven't seen it during my five days in the space. But I did see the beautiful coastline of our motherland and the island of Taiwan," Fei said.
Many students said they are proud of their motherland because China has become one of the few countries which have the ability to send astronauts in the space. And some of them were eager to know how to prepare themselves for taking part in the space industry in the future.
"If we want to be in the space industry in future, how can we prepare ourselves?" a middle school boy asked.
"Make full use of your time in the school to learn more knowledge. Try to keep good health by doing more physical exercises and have a clear target. If you keep striving for that, I believe you could finally realize your dream," Nie said.
After the meeting, the students said although the space heroes could not answer all their questions during such a short period of time, their answers have encouraged them to believe that one day their space dream will become true.
(Xinhua News Agency November 30, 2005)
