1. World-class innovations seen in China's marine oil equipment 

China's manufacturing capacity of deep-water oil and gas equipment - represented by deep-water semi-submersible production platforms, overall integrated technology of ultra large floating production storage and offloading (FPSO) systems and central manifold systems - has reached a globally advanced level, the China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) announced on Jan 28. 

The Shenhai Yihao (Deep Sea No 1) power station, the world’s first 100,000-ton deep-water semi-submersible oil production and storage platform, was delivered to Yantai, Shandong province on Jan 14.  

The station includes three world-class innovations and applies 13 advanced domestic technologies, representing a major breakthrough in the deep-water oil and gas field and in the construction of deep-water offshore engineering equipment in China. 

The Shenhai Yihao (Deep Sea No 1) power station. [Photo/WeChat account: szchtf] 

2. First homemade hydrogen fuel cell hybrid locomotive rolled out 

The first China-developed hydrogen fuel cell hybrid locomotive rolled off the production line at CRRC Datong Co Ltd in Datong, North China's Shanxi province, on Jan 27. 

The locomotive is designed to run at a speed of 80 kilometers per hour, for 24.5 hours, with 700 kilowatts of continuous power. Its maximum traction load on a straight track exceeds 5,000 metric tons. 

This is the latest achievement in the application of hydrogen energy in the field of railway locomotives in China, and marks a key breakthrough in the utilization of hydrogen energy. 

The first China-developed hydrogen fuel cell hybrid locomotive. [Photo/WeChat account: szchtf] 

3. Astronomers discover first cloudless, Jupiter-like planet 

American astronomers recently discovered the first Jupiter-like exoplanet to have no clouds or haze in its observable atmosphere. The gas giant was named WASP-62b and is about half the mass of Jupiter. It is 575 light years from Earth. 

The discovery of the planet could help scientists study a formation process that is different from that of other planets. 

4. Yellow River tunnel is hollowed out near Jinan 

The west tunnel of the Yellow River Tunnel project in Jinan, the capital city of Shandong, was hollowed out on Jan 23. 

The total length of the project is 4,760 meters. The tunnel itself is 3,890 meters in length; of this, the shield section is 2,519 meters long. It was designed with a double-floor layout, with a highway running along the upper floor and rail traffic on the lower floor. 

The outer diameter of the tunnel segment is 15.2 meters. It is the largest tunnel in diameter in the Yellow River basin, and is also the largest shield tunnel combining highway and railway currently under construction in China. 

The tunnel will be open to traffic in October, and it will shorten the crossing time for the Yellow River to four minutes by car and 2.5 minutes by subway. 

The construction site of the Yellow River Tunnel project in Jinan. [Photo/WeChat account: szchtf] 

5. Chang'e 4 probe enters 26th lunar night 

The Chang'e 4 probe's lander and its rover Yutu-2, or Jade Rabbit-2, finished their 26th lunar day of work on the moon at 9:10 pm and at 2:06 pm on Jan 20 (Beijing time). 

Landing on the moon on Jan 3, 2019, the Chang'e 4 probe has survived 749 Earth days on the moon and the Yutu-2 rover has traveled a total distance of 628.47 meters.