Researchers hope to catch next big wave

China missed the chance to become part of the global observatory network that recently reported the first direct observation of gravitational waves, experts said, adding that space exploration is an opportunity that cannot be overlooked.

"When US scientists planned a global network to expand LIGO's (the advanced Laser Interferometer Gravitational-wave Observatory) surveillance area, they had proposed the idea of an observatory to Beijing," said Hu Wenrui, a renowned physicist and a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

"However, the Chinese did not accept the idea for building a ground detector, so LIGO chose its Asian base in India," he said.