Yang Hong is the chief architect of the space lab system for China’s Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. From the spacecrafts Shenzhou1 to Shenzhou5, he’s witnessed the country’s milestones in manned space missions. Now his efforts have paid off.

CGTN’s Wang Qiwei has his story.

“Receiving the Guanghua Engineering Science and Technology Award is not only my personal honor, but also a reward and encouragement for all the members of China’s manned space programs,” he said.

Yang leads a dynamic team, with an average age of only 34-years-old. He believes that everyone played an important role in the smooth running of the space programs.

China has a three-step strategy for the programs, with the last step being building a space lab around 2022. The country started the construction of the space lab from scratch, and as the chief architect of that system,Yang has shouldered heavy responsibilities.

“We will develop and send one core module and two experiment modules to space. Together they will form a T-shape structure, which weighs nearly 100 tons. When the space lab is put into operation, we will conduct scientific experiments to serve the country’s strategic development,” he explained.

In 1995, China was left out of the International Space Station project, which included 16 countries. Now China has developed the research technology for its own space station system. The International Space Station is set to retire in 2024. It is likely China will be the only country with a permanent space station at that time.