Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics (NUAA) is taking pride in the fact that one of their Associate Professors is among the scientific research team members journeying to Antarctica on a year-long expedition that is China’s 37th to the South Pole.
Yesterday, 10 November, team members of the expedition, organised by the Ministry of Natural Resources of the People’s Republic of China, embarked the icebreaking research vessel, “MV Xuelong 2”, in Shanghai.
On board is Quan Ronghui, Director and Associate Professor of the Institute of Space Science and Technology in the School of Astronautics at Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics.
Quan shall be based at the Zhongshan Station (Antarctica) to explore scientific issues related to space physics and space science, based on the International Space Weather Meridian Circle Program.
“The natural laboratory that is Antarctica attracts me the most”, said Quan, who had to pass three rounds of screening and training at the Polar Research Institute of China over the course of a year. Additional training for the harsh climate of the Antarctic undertaken by the team members in Heilongjiang Province after Chinese New Year went online due to the epidemic.
At time of writing and according to MarineTraffic.com, the Xuelong 2 was making headway into the East China Sea at a speed of 14 knots en route to its first port of call, Lyttelton in New Zealand. The team on board is expected to arrive at the Zhongshan Station in Antarctica at the end of December or in early January.
China Daily reports that the expedition will carry out hydrological, meteorological and environmental investigations at the South Pole and monitor new pollutants, such as micro plastics and rubbish adrift in the Antarctic Ocean.
Lucky students at NUAA are now able to look forward to taking part in video links with Quan, who will also be sharing his scientific research experience in Antarctica with the university’s faculty.
Born in the 1980s and a father of two, Quan shall be keeping in touch daily with his family, no doubt via WeChat, reporting on his life and, most importantly for a Chinese, the quality of his meals. The Yangtze Evening News reports that he said, “If I am going to miss any food, it shall surely be the unforgettable dishes in the NUAA canteen”.
