How romantic are astronomers? Come and see those shining "Chinese stars"

When we look up at the night sky, there is also a "China" 600 million kilometers away from the earth. It is an asteroid with a diameter of 26 kilometers. 94 years ago, the young astronomer Zhang Yuzhe discovered it at the Yerkes Observatory in the United States. It is the first asteroid discovered by a Chinese.

As the only celestial body that can be named by its discoverer, the naming of asteroids has become a world-recognized honor due to its seriousness, uniqueness and permanent immutability. With the continuous improvement of China's observation level, there are more and more Chinese romances in the sky.

The "Wenchuan Star" is shaped like a heart, the "Hong Kong Star" has the last two digits of its number exactly 97, and the "Jay Chou Star" was discovered and named by four astronomy enthusiasts from the mainland and Taiwan... and many more asteroids are named after contemporary scientists, including Yang Zhenning, Qian Xuesen, Nan Rendong, Wu Wenjun, Tu Youyou, Hua Luogeng...

What kind of romance do astronomers have? Do they observe asteroids just to name them? Will asteroids hit the Earth? Follow the reporter to the Purple Mountain Observatory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and listen to the stories behind those "Chinese stars".

Reporter: Lin Kai, Li Guangzheng, Wang Jueyin, Qiu Bingqing

Produced by Xinhua News Agency Audio and Video Department