Wang Yaping [Xinhua]

Wang Yaping is used to making history. She became the second woman from China to enter space, on June 11, 2013, and the first woman to enter the core module of China's space station, Tianhe, on October 16, 2021. She also became the first woman from China to teach students from space, on June 20, 2013. On November 7 this year, Wang made history again — she became the first Chinese woman to perform an extravehicular activity in space. That event marked a new height in China's manned space program, and it marked a new achievement in Chinese women's development.

Three Chinese taikonauts, onboard the Shenzhou-13 spaceship, entered the core module of the country's space station, Tianhe, on October 16. Zhai Zhigang, Wang and Ye Guangfu became the second crew to enter China's space station. They will stay in orbit for six months, the longest stay in space by Chinese taikonauts.

Catherine Coleman, the former NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) astronaut who spent six months (December 2010 to May 2011) on the International Space Station, sent a video congratulatory message to Wang. Coleman said, "When you look out the window and you see the stars and the Earth, billions of women will be looking out that window with you, including me."

As a result of Wang's mission, the number of women who have walked in space increased. Prior to Wang's mission, 15 women had participated in 42 spacewalks since 1984.

Space Dream

Wang was born in 1980 to a rural family in East China's Shandong Province. Her dream to visit space began in 2003, when China sent its first taikonaut, Yang Liwei, into space.

"I watched the bright rocket flame on TV, and an idea flashed through my mind: China now has a man taikonaut, when will there be a woman taikonaut? The aspiration to become a taikonaut was quietly embedded in my heart," Wang says. At that time, she was a transport-aircraft pilot, with two years of experience, in the People's Liberation Army Air Force.

After completing 1,600 hours of safe flights over nine years, Wang in 2010 was among the second group selected for China's taikonaut program. She quickly became a leading candidate to become China's first woman taikonaut. However, she did not pass her final tests; instead, in 2012, Liu Yang became China's first woman taikonaut.

Wang did not lose heart, but instead pushed herself even harder. She always ran three laps more than the others during fitness training, and she insisted on being held to the same standards as her male counterparts during desert-survival training. She asked to train an additional 30 minutes each time she had to train in the pressure chamber. "You can't catch a break simply by being a woman," Wang says.

Her efforts were not in vain; in 2013, Wang was named a crew member of the Shenzhou-10 space mission. "I didn't expect the space dream I had in 2003 finally would come true 10 years later," Wang says. During that mission, Wang became China's first space teacher when she gave a live video lecture to students.

A week before her lecture, Wang received a letter from Barbara Morgan, the former NASA astronaut who delivered the world's first lecture from space, from the International Space Station, in 2007. Morgan wrote, "You will be very busy up there, but please remember to take time to look out the window. China and all of this world are beautiful." Wang's lecture was a success, with an audience of more than 60 million students across China.

Liu Cixin, the famous science fiction writer and Hugo Award winner from China, described Wang's lesson as a "brush," which painted a space world for children that is different from Earth.

Wang's ponytail, smiling face and soft-spoken voice attracted millions of hits on social media, where she has been known as a space heroine.

Wang, who has received countless accolades over the years, has taken on more and greater responsibilities. For example, she became a deputy to the 13th National People's Congress, China's top legislature, and Vice-Chairperson of the 13th All -China Youth Federation. "Dreams are like stars in the universe. They may seem out of reach, but as long as you work hard, you can touch them someday. Young people should have the courage and persistence to pursue and realize their dreams," Wang says.

Wang obtained a master's degree, in mass communication, from Peking University, in Beijing, in 2016. She has also given numerous science lectures at schools in Beijing.

A see-off ceremony for three Chinese astronauts departing on the Shenzhou-13 crewed space mission is held on October 15. [Xinhua/Li Gang]

Live Class from Outer Space

The trio of Zhai, Wang and Ye livestreamed their first science class from Tianhe on December 9. They amazed many students back on Earth.

The class started at 3:40 pm (Beijing time), it lasted about 45 minutes, and it was attended by 1,420 primary or middle school students from five classrooms across China. The primary classroom was in the China Science and Technology Museum, in Beijing. Wang's five-year-old daughter was among the students in that classroom.

The other four classrooms were in Nanning, in South China's Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, Wenchuan, in Southwest China's Sichuan Province, and the Hong Kong and Macao special administrative regions.

Assisted by Zhai and Ye, Wang first gave a tour around the core module, and she explained how she and her crewmates go about their lives and complete their work on the space station. She showed the students the microwave, water dispenser and refrigerator in the space kitchen.

In response to a Hong Kong student's question about water, Wang said the water she and her crewmates drink is recycled, and added there is no difference in the taste of regular and recycled water. With a water-recycling system, every drop of water is used in the space station, she said.

Wang said if the astronauts looked a little chubby and puffy, it was because microgravity in space was affecting their blood circulation. She said the crew used a treadmill, exercise cycle and resistance bands to stay healthy. She showed the students how to use the cycle to increase their upper limb strength, by putting her hands on the pedals and floating upside down.

During a buoyancy experiment, Wang placed a table tennis ball in a glass of water. Instead of floating to the top, as it would on Earth, the ball remained in the middle of the water. Buoyancy almost disappeared in the weightless environment.

Wang also demonstrated how zero gravity magnifies the surface tension of water. She created a water film, using a metal ring and a bag filled with water. She placed a paper flower bud, which she and her daughter made before her mission, on the water film. The bud rotated magically on the film, and eventually "blossomed."

"You are all budding flowers of our country. I hope your dreams will blossom in the vast universe," Wang told the students.

Wang Yaping (R) completes extravehicular activities. [Xinhua/Guo Zhongzheng]

(Source: Xinhua/Translated and edited by Women of China)