Retired Zhejiang teacher devotes herself to space education

Over the past two decades, China has made great strides in space exploration. [Photo: vcg]

Yao Aiying was teaching at the Huanggu Middle School in Pinghu City, Zhejiang Province before she recently retired. 

Her interest in space education began in the early 1990s. 

In August 1992, the financially struggling China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology successfully launched an Australia-owned satellite against all the odds. 

Yao was excited by the news and organized a fund-raising event among her pupils. 

She sent their final donation of 181.2 yuan and a letter of congratulations to the academy. 

Though just a drop in the ocean to what they needed in funding, Yao says, the donation was very meaningful.

“336 pupils donated 20 or 30 cents each. Our purpose was to get people from all walks of life to care about and help our scientists. 

“We never expected our letter to be read out at a meeting of all members of the academy. Several older academicians were moved to tears.”

Since then, Yao began her drive to promote space knowledge with space scientists. 

Over the past 25 years, she has managed to get her students to meet astronauts and space scientists face-to-face dozens of times. 

She has written books on space education which have totaled a million Chinese characters.

And even though she’s retired, Yao is still at the forefront of space education. 

“Next, I want to help build and run a scientific center and a space-themed entertainment park in our city. Having written some books on space knowledge, I’ll write some others on the stories of our scientists. 

“We should let our students have a great ambition and purpose. They won’t necessarily become engineers and scientists making spaceships and satellites. But we should encourage them with the patriotic spirit and devotion of space scientists.”    

The story of Yao herself is being adapted to a film which is being shot in Pinghu.