China's 'eye of heaven' to open the eye of the world

Boundless vision, sharing mind

On March 31 this year, after endless trials, the FAST team announced that it would be open to the global scientific community and that any research organization or individual with a need for the project could apply for observation.

"Once the application was issued, foreign astronomical research teams which used to be limited by their geographical location and technical conditions have submitted applications to China," said Jiang.

According to Jiang, the application was accessible from the end of March to mid-May, and "more than 200 requests have been received so far, among which more than 30 came from abroad."

All the submission will be evaluated by top experts in their respective domains to ensure that the approved ones are in line with astronomical frontiers.

The chosen teams are expected to start using FAST in August this year.

From being initially questioned both at home and abroad, to being taken seriously by the astronomical community worldwide, FAST has witnessed the rapid development of China's cutting-edge technology and infrastructure construction.

"In the past, we were often the ones being helped by other countries. Now, the world will benefit from China's leading FAST project," he said.

Astronomic researches don't remain within the borders of the countries where they occur — knowledge is a public good, with little regard for national boundaries. Exploration of the stars has long been an eternal dream.

Exploration in the cosmos is not only related to mankind itself, but also closely associated with the fate of the planet. The space environment has a profound impact on the climate change and biological survival, which is a matter of concern for all mankind.

Chinese government attaches great importance to the construction and development of FAST.

"The opening of FAST can provide China's own contributions and experiences to build a shared community in outer space, and is an important step towards a wider world for the human being," Jiang said.

To date, China has been the "eye-opener" by building FAST, extending human wisdom to distant places that were once unimaginable, and transmitting the unfading hope from this generation to the next.

Wang Yuhuan and Xie Kaifan from Tsinghua University contributed to this story.