Magnitude 6.0 earthquake shakes central Taiwan coast

A magnitude 6.0 earthquake shook Taiwan yesterday morning. There were no immediate reports of damage or injuries.The quake struck at 9:05 a.m. at a depth of 6.8 kilometers in Hualien county, halfway down the east coast of the island, Taiwan’s Central Weather Bureau said. It was felt across most of the island of 24 million people including to the north in Taipei, the capital. It was also felt across the Taiwan Strait in mainland China’s Fujian province, Chinese state broadcaster CCTV said.

China says it successfully intercepted a missile in flight

China says it has successfully intercepted a missile in flight, in a test of an anti-ballistic missile system that could improve its defenses as it presses its territorial claims. A brief statement from the Defense Ministry late Sunday gave no details, but said the test was purely defensive in nature and was not aimed at any foreign nations. Missiles are a major component of China’s defense and are the backbone of its space program, which has launched astronauts and components to the nation’s orbiting space station.

Scientists develops new coating for spacecraft thermal control

Chinese scientists have developed a metallic-based thermal-control coating for the Shenzhou-14 crewed spaceship that will protect the taikonauts from extreme heat and cold during their six-month stay in orbit. The new coating works in two ways: providing low solar absorption to help reduce the sun’s effect on the spacecraft’s interior temperature; and providing low infrared emittance to block heat release from internal sources. Tasked with completing the construction of China’s Tiangong space station, the orbiting Shenzhou-14 taikonauts will witness several complex station configurations during their six-month journey.