Thirty secondary students selected for the Young Astronaut Training Camp 2024 will visit Beijing, as well as Wenchang in Hainan Province, and Jiuquan, during a nine-day training camp from July 16 to August 3.  

The Leisure & Cultural Services Department (LCSD) said this year’s students will be among the first participants in the long-running programme to visit the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site, which is the country’s most advanced rocket launch facility.

After visiting the launch site, they will visit the Wenchang Aerospace Science Center and the Wenchang Aerospace Supercomputing Center.

The students will then travel to Beijing to visit the National Astronomical Observatories. At the China Astronaut Research & Training Center, they will learn about putting on and removing spacesuits, undergo wilderness survival training, and get a taste of space food.

They will also visit the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, which is responsible for launching manned spaceflights, as well as the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ National Time Service Center, in Xian.

The students will be given the chance to meet aerospace experts and astronauts to learn more about the development of the country's aerospace programmes and its distinguished achievements to date.

Addressing a send-off ceremony at the Space Museum today, Chief Secretary Chan Kwok-ki said in light of China’s plan to become the world’s leading space-faring nation, Hong Kong – as an international innovation and technology hub – must contribute to the nation’s aerospace endeavours.

He encouraged students participating in the training camp to grasp the opportunity to learn in earnest, broaden their horizons and gear up their skills.

Mr Chan also encouraged them to take the country’s aerospace heroes as their role models and aspire to make contributions towards the betterment of the country and of Hong Kong in the future.

The training camp is jointly organised by the LCSD and the Chinese General Chamber of Commerce, and implemented by the Space Museum. It is also one of the activities in the Chinese Culture Promotion Series. 

Thirty Secondary 2 to 6 students were selected out of around 200 applicants from more than 130 local secondary schools.