China’s spacecraft Shenzhou VII,神州七号 blasted off last night, carrying 3 taikongnauts ( a term if I remember correctly was coined 5 years ago when China sent its first astronaut to space. Taikong/太空 means space). On this mission, one of the taikongnauts will conduct China’s first space walk. Therefore, this mission has been marked with extraordinay importance.

TV stations ran hours of live coverage. When the spacecraft catapulted into space, it was undeniablly an inspiring and proud moment. But more than national pride, it would be truly wonderful if the mission would bring something else to China, to help us see our country as a little spot on earth, and earth a little spot in the infinite universe. That’s one of the greatest legacies of the moon landing, which inspired a new world view that helped establish environmentalism and global citizenship. Ancient Chinese philosophy sees human beings as dust in the universe. A few thousand years later, technology might help us understand that better.