Science ship construction set to begin

Primary mission will be to survey oceans, atmosphere, ecosystems

A major shipbuilder has unveiled plans to start the construction of China's biggest research vessel this year, with the project expected to take about two years to complete.

Work on assembling the ship will begin at Shanghai's Jiangnan Shipyard using a design from the Marine Design and Research Institute of China, Hu Keyi, the shipyard's technical director, said this week.