China’s long-awaited Chengdu Tianfu International Airport has officially begun operations, offering travelers 【小题1】 new gateway to the home of giant pandas.

Chengdu is now the third city in the country 【小题2】 (have) two international airports, joining Shanghai and Beijing.

Phase one of the massive aviation hub(航空枢纽) has the capacity to handle up to 60 million passengers per year, 【小题3】 (far) opening up the country’s southwest region. Three runways and two terminals, 【小题4】 cover an area of 710,000 square meters, are 【小题5】 operation. The airport is reported to 【小题6】 (eventual) house terminals capable of handling 120 million passengers annually.

Phase one features a wide variety of cutting-edge technologies, including facial 【小题7】 (recognize) software, smart security systems and self-boarding gates. It only 【小题8】 (take) 37 to 44 minutes from city center to the airport by metro line.

Chengdu Tianfu International Airport is just one of many airports China plans to open in the 【小题9】 (come) years. The country aims to have 400 airports in use by 2035, according to the Transportation Network Planning Outline 【小题10】 (issue) in early 2021.

By far, the most technologically challenging railway ever built was probably the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, 【小题1】 (complete) in 2006, connecting Xining to Lhasa. The railway was first planned in the 1950s, but the technical difficulties were too much 【小题2】 (overcome). It was not until 1984 【小题3】 the first 814-kilometer section of the railway, from Xining to Golmud, was completed.

The biggest issue was the permafrost — frozen earth. In the summer, in many places the top layer of the permafrost melts and 【小题4】 (turn) to mud, making the ground unstable. A 【小题5】 (various) of solutions were used to get around this. In some cases, railway bridges 【小题6】 (build). In other cases, pipes were installed under the ground to keep it frozen during the summer. Finally, in some areas it was 【小题7】 (possible) to build the railway over the permafrost, so engineers tunneled through it.

It is hoped that the experience of building the Qinghai-Tibet Railway can be used in 【小题8】 new project, linking Kashi, China with Islamabad, Pakistan along the Karakoram Highway, the highest highway in the world. This railway will travel 1,000 kilometers through the Pamir Mountains, 【小题9】 are nicknamed the Roof of the World. Building such a railway will be 【小题10】 (undoubted) a technical challenge. It has not yet been announced when construction on this project will start.

High-speed rail 【小题1】   (develop) rapidly in China since the mid-2000s. China's high-speed rail accounts 【小题2】 two-thirds of the world's total high-speed railway networks. China's rail 【小题3】   (ambitious) just keep growing. The latest addition to the country's railway network is a high-speed train line, connecting the cities of Zhangzhou, Xiamen and Fuzhou, all three of 【小题4】 are in Fujian Province.

The first train on this line started operating on September 28, 2023, 【小题5】 (depart) from Fuzhou, the province's capital. Travel time between Fuzhou and Xiamen, 【小题6】 popular tourist destination, will be under an hour. The new railway currently has 84 bridges, 29 tunnels, 【小题7】 a section of the track that goes over the sea, making it the 【小题8】   (country) first over-water bullet train. Official state news agency Xinhua notes that ground transportation in Fujian Province has been 【小题9】 (challenge) due to it mountainous terrain (地形) . 【小题10】 (make) the operation of this new line is a significant milestone for the province. China's continuous investments in its railway network will contribute to the country's overall economic growth and development.