Catching up with the US and Russia, China has established itself as a leading player in space exploration in recent years. In 2016 for instance, the world's largest single-dish radio telescope, the Five-hundred-metre Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope (FAST), was completed in the province of Guizhou in south west China. The supersized device is designed for monitoring the cosmos for signs of alien life. FAST has been open to use for Chinese astronomers since April 2019, and on 24 September it passed a series of assessments which means it can be used by astronomers across the globe.