China capable of protecting astronauts from effects of space weightlessness

BEIJING, Sept. 21 (Xinhua) -- China has the capability to protect astronauts from the effects of a weightless environment for 180 days in space, according to a forum on aerospace medicine that kicked off Thursday in Beijing.

The progress in this area has provided theoretical support and a technical platform for research in cardiovascular health, musculoskeletal systems, neurodegenerative diseases, human aging and drug screening here on Earth.

Speaking at the conference, Zhang Lu, who stayed in space for 186 days during the Shenzhou-15 crewed mission, said that the country's space medical support is timely and reliable, weightlessness protection is diverse and effective, and aerospace medical experiments have achieved fruitful results.

The Shenzhou-16 crew, currently carrying out its mission in China's space station, sent out a message, saying the space station has entered the application and development stage, the manned lunar mission has been initiated and a national key laboratory for aerospace medicine has been successfully established. According to the crew, these advancements will bring fresh opportunities for aerospace medicine development.

Li Yinghui, a researcher from the China Astronaut Research and Training Center, said that their research team has been focusing on medical challenges induced by microgravity, space radiation and other space environment factors for the past 30 years since the initiation of the country's manned space program.

Li noted that a protection system for the physiological effects of weightlessness in medium and long-term manned spaceflight has been created, and a comprehensive countermeasure protection system covering the entire mission cycle has been developed.

"We have also built a systematic, large-scale and all-purpose space medical experimental research system and achieved a series of innovative breakthroughs in space medicine, including the world's first study on artificial blood vessel tissue chip," Li added.

During the two-day conference, experts will exchange ideas on the achievements in space medicine research during the construction of China's space station, and discuss cutting-edge theories, development trends and new technologies involving space medicine.

The conference will also demonstrate the application of advanced in-orbit health maintenance technology in the operation of the space station and the future manned lunar landing mission.

The forum is hosted by the China Astronaut Research and Training Center, Beijing Institute of Technology and Tianjin University of Traditional Chinese Medicine.