Happy ending

The event concluded on Sept 24, and while most participants headed home, Dai and another astrophotographer planned to continue their work by visiting the Hami Solar Thermal Power Station. However, Liu Xuehua informed them of some bad news — the power station was closed for repair and maintenance.

She also shared some good news: they had the option to visit the country's largest linear-Fresnel CSP (concentrated solar power) integrated energy demonstration base instead. "The 100-megawatt project just achieved full-system grid connection on Sept 18," Liu said. Equipped with 260,000 reflectors and covering a solar field area of 800,000 square meters, she added, "It's a site worth visiting on a clear night."

They did. Dai's works on the energy project under the starry night topped the premium content chart of a major news platform, with 2.38 million reads.

According to Liu, from January to September, Hami received a total of almost 21 million tourists, an increase of 17.62 percent compared to the same period last year. Tourist spending reached 15.09 billion yuan, reflecting a growth of 27.40 percent.

Probably because of all the efforts made by the local government to promote tourism, during this year's National Day holiday, Hami received a total of 1.05 million tourists, an increase of 29.34 percent compared to the same period last year. Tourist spending reached 806 million yuan, marking a growth of 43.95 percent.

chenliang@chinadaily.com.cn