China’s Tianzhou-8 cargo craft delivers supplies for scientific experiments to space station

China's newly-launched Tianzhou-8 cargo spacecraft delivered some 480 kilograms of equipment to the Tiangong Space Station, which are set to be used for in-space scientific experiments covering multiple fields.

China on Friday announced the successful launch of its Tianzhou-8 cargo spacecraft which is delivering supplies to its orbiting Tiangong space station.

The supplies and equipment will be used in many different scientific projects. Some were started during previous missions, such as experiments around cells and space radiation.

"The Tianzhou-6 mission successfully differentiated hematopoietic stem cells from human pluripotent stem cells, which was the first case globally. The Tianzhou-8 mission will experiment on the three-dimensional growth and in-orbit existence of human pluripotent stem cells, which is also the first time in the world according to our study and following of relevant reports and documents," said Lei Xiaohua, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

"Studying the risk of space radiation for tumor occurrence is very important for the health of our astronauts, especially for future travel to space. We hope to use such an environment in space to study the risk of lung cancer," said Zhou Guangming, a researcher at Soochow University.

Some experiments will be carried out for the first time, like the introduction of 'fruit flies' aboard the space station.

"By magnetic shielding in the experiment, we can reduce the magnetic field in the certain cultivation environment. And then, we will look at whether fruit flies can survive in the space environment with both microgravity and hypo magnetic fields, and whether they display specific or novel behaviors," said Li Yan, a researcher at the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Chinese scientists hope that these space experiments will translate into new solutions and applications back on Earth, all with an aim of helping mankind.

China’s Tianzhou-8 cargo craft delivers supplies for scientific experiments to space station

China’s Tianzhou-8 cargo craft delivers supplies for scientific experiments to space station

Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has expressed hopes that the upcoming 19th G20 Summit can reach an agreement on hunger, inequality and poverty, urging a pivot toward these and away from rampant military spending.

In an interview with China Central Television ahead of the summit, set to take place in Rio de Janeiro from November 18 to 19, Lula laid out his case on why the world should spend less on war and more on the wellbeing of children and vulnerable groups.

"Brazil doesn't want war. Brazil wants peace. Last year, the world spent 2.4 trillion U.S. dollars on weapons. If we spent that money on education and food, would there still be 733 million people living in hunger? Would so many children die from hunger? These are my questions. Therefore, we hope the G20 Rio de Janeiro summit can reach a pact on hunger, inequality and poverty," said the president.

"What we should not do is wage wars, kill and destroy everything, after which we have to rebuild, when nearly 1 billion people are living in hunger. Only if we have peace can we develop, produce and distribute. That's why I'm very content with the consensus reached between Brazil and China on the political settlement of the Ukraine crisis," Lula said.

After attending the the 31st APEC Economic Leaders' Meeting in Lima, Peru on Friday and Saturday and completing his ongoing state visit to Peru, Chinese President Xi Jinping will attend the 19th G20 Summit and pay a state visit to Brazil from November 17 to 21, according to the Chinese Foreign Ministry.

During his visit, Xi will hold talks with Lula to discuss bilateral relations and exchange views on international and regional issues of mutual interest, the ministry said.

Brazilian president expects hunger pact at upcoming G20 summit