Being a farmer is a lot of work. You spend all the day outdoors. Luckily, smart technology (技术) is making its way down to the farm. Drones (无人机), apps, driverless tractors (无人驾驶拖拉机)—how are these technologies changing one of the world’s oldest jobs? Let’s take a look.

When we talk about drones, we may think of gathering intelligence (情报). These eyes in the sky can also help farmers. Farmers closely watch their crops (庄稼), find pests (害虫) and make sure that water is being used efficiently (有效地). Drones can also help humans do lots of work. In Xinjiang, for example, over 5,000 drones can look after 1.3 million hectares (公顷) of land. The drones can spread seeds (种子), fertilizer (化肥) and pesticides (农药) faster and more evenly than humans.

The driverless car is an exciting new technology. The same technology can help farmers plant and harvest (收割)! There are now driverless tractors that can work in fields around the clock. The tractors have sensors (传感器), radar and GPS. The tractor can automatically (自动地) receive grain (谷物) from a combine (收割机), and then unload (卸货) it. It is able to detect objects (识别物体) and won’t run over people or run into other equipment or crops.”

One of the most important jobs of a farmer is to make sure that plants get water. A new smart phone app called Smart Irrigation (智能灌溉) can help. The app uses GPS technology to tell farmers when to water their crops. It connects with the closest weather station to learn about local rainfall, and then estimates (估计) how much water the plants need each day. It’s not just for farmers, people at home can also use it to decide when to water their lawns (草坪).

The six-month stay for Chinese astronauts in the Tiangong space station has ended recently. Before returning, they face one last test — returning home safely. What needs to be done before they leave the station?

To go home after a long journey, you have to pack up. Besides their personal belongings, astronauts also need to bring home experimental data and samples (样品) for further research on Earth.

The three astronauts also need to clean “the house”. They must collect leftover food, sanitary waste and waste from experiments. The waste is put into the orbital module (轨道舱), which burns up as it re-enters Earth’s atmosphere.

The astronauts must also put equipment back in place. It will be more than a month before the Shenzhou XIV astronauts enter Tiangong. They need to make sure that things like gym equipment are fixed to the walls for safety.

Astronauts experience microgravity (微重力) for long periods of time. This affects their bodies. They lose fluids, their muscles atrophy and they lose bone strength. To ensure a safe return, the three astronauts do physical exercises to keep their muscles strong. Based on their physical examination data, experts have customized (定制) exercise plans for each of them to ensure a safe landing.

Tiangong space station will be completed before the end of this year. Six astronauts will be sent there for the Shenzhou XIV and XV missions. The Shenzhou XV crew (全体成员) will fly to the station around the year’s end to meet their Shenzhou XIV colleagues.