Far Out: China Signs Up to Help Build the Most Powerful Telescope on the Planet

Riding off of a successful launching of China's first teacher into space, the National Astronomical Observatories of China has signed an agreement that will put the nation alongside the US, Japan, Canada and India in an astronomical exploration project.

China signed the Thirty Meter Telescope (TMT) Master Agreement on Friday, becoming part of a global agreement to construct a telescope on Mauna Kea, Hawaii that will have the ability to collect better images from space than the Hubble Telescope. The telescope's mirror will be so powerful, it will allow researchers to better study objects at the "edge" of the known universe in more detail and understand how some of the first stars and galaxies formed.

This telescope has been the talk of the astronomy community for years, but this formal consensus among international governments and universities will finally set the stage for the project to move forward with funding plans. In April, Hawaii's Board of Land and Natural Resources granted the project a permit to build the telescope, so construction is due to begin in spring 2013.

Meanwhile, back home, China is one of only two countries in the world (bet you guessed who the other one is: Russia) that still launches humans into space. Why? Well, it was only 10 years ago that China's first astronaut Yang Liwei was sent into orbit.

”I hope my experience will encourage more people to become interested in space technology and support space development,” he said. These photos sum up nicely just how China's space program had progressed after that.

China has high hopes for a space station in 2020, and recently tested a rocket engine for its Long March 5, which is intended to carry spacecraft for the nation's planned space station. This will fly from a launch center that is scheduled to be completed next year on Hainan Island.

Let's just hope that this time, Chinese media doesn't get too overzealous about the space mission – wouldn't want to jump the gun again.

Photo: Stephanie on Flickr