Chinese astronauts take silkworms for zero-gravity spin in Tiangong-2 space lab
Three projects designed by Hong Kong students will be conducted during the month-long space lab mission
Two Chinese astronauts spent part of their first days in the Tiangong-2 space laboratory playing with a silkworm in zero gravity – thanks to an experiment suggested by Hong Kong students.
In a video released by the state-run Xinhua news agency on Thursday, Jing Haipeng, commander of the space mission, released a white silkworm and let it float in the air.
Six silkworms were taken into space by the astronauts for an experiment designed by Hong Kong students to study how the larvae transform in the weightless environment, Xinhua said.
The silkworm was seen wriggling as it drifted inside the space lab, tethered with some silk tied to Jing’s fingers, said Zhu Fengdeng, an engineer at the space control centre who was commenting in the video.
“The silkworm was trying to climb onto Jing’s hand,” Zhu said. “But it bounced off every time it touched.”