Former mentor praises academic brilliance of Hong Kong's 1st astronaut, Lai Ka-ying

Before making history as Hong Kong's 1st space traveler, Lai Ka-ying was a meticulous and brilliant student who helped develop advanced cybercrime tracking systems, according to her former doctoral supervisor who praised her exceptional analytical skills ahead of her upcoming mission.

A surprising career pivot

Chow Kam-pui, an honorary associate professor at the School of Computing and Data Science of the University of Hong Kong, served as Lai's doctoral advisor.

He recalled a gathering in 2023 when Lai initially revealed her participation in the national selection for payload specialists, a revelation that greatly surprised her academic peers. The team questioned her ability to endure the extreme physical demands of spaceflight, such as weightlessness and intense launch gravity.

Lai reassured them that she had already passed preliminary physical tests. The group also discussed the emotional toll of being separated from her 3 children during the rigorous training, to which Lai admitted she would miss them deeply but trusted the established family care arrangements.

Academic excellence and anti-counterfeiting success

Lai completed her undergraduate, master's, and doctoral degrees at the university.

After finishing her master's degree focusing on cryptography in 2007, she volunteered for Chow's research team to study computer forensics and cybercrime, eventually earning her doctorate in 2011.

Chow remembered her as an exceptionally detail-oriented individual, noting that her meticulous nature even extended to reminding the team about travel vaccinations before an academic conference in South Africa.

During her doctoral studies, Lai played a crucial role in developing a joint system with local customs authorities to monitor counterfeit goods on online auction platforms.

Within 1 year of its launch, the system investigated over 120 cases and successfully solved nearly 70, significantly boosting law enforcement efficiency.

Her impressive capabilities also led Chow to recommend her as an expert witness for a cyber fraud court case before she had even graduated. She later joined the police force to continue her professional work in this field.

Data skills suited for spaceflight

Although her academic background is not directly linked to aerospace engineering, Chow explained that Lai's intense focus, patience, independent analytical skills, and ability to process massive amounts of data without losing interest make her perfectly qualified for the role of a payload specialist.

Following her successful selection into the 4th batch of astronauts and her entry into a 2-year intensive training program, Chow noted that they lost direct contact and he has only followed her progress through media reports.

Despite the immense pressure of the mission, he expressed full confidence in her ability to handle the challenges seamlessly

Hopes for a global perspective

As his former student prepares to board the Tiangong space station, Chow described feeling a mix of joy and nervousness.

He extended his best wishes for a pleasant journey and expressed hope that she would capture many beautiful photographs from space.

He noted that photographing the Earth from orbit perfectly embodies the university's core educational philosophy of maintaining a global perspective.

𝗗𝗼𝘄𝗻𝗹𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝗔𝗽𝗽 ↓