Hongkongers were impressed by what they saw of the country's first domestically-made icebreaker, the "Xuelong 2", or "Snow Dragon 2", as it opened to the public on its second day in the SAR.

People can tour the vessel free of charge until Friday, with tickets available online.

Those on board can check out a variety of scientific research equipment, including a device that enables the vessel to reach the ocean floor to collect marine samples.

"It's amazing. I saw on the vessel a device that collects seawater from the ocean floor. I think it's amazing that it can withstand a very high intensity of air pressure. It can go down like six thousand metres. The country is developing very well," said a student after touring the vessel.

Another visitor, Wilton Fok who directs the e-Learning Development Laboratory at the University of Hong Kong, said he hopes the SAR will nurture more scientists.

"It inspires me to participate and see if Hong Kong can contribute talent in the field of scientific research, such as biomedicine or environmental science," he said.

But a woman said the 30-minutes allowed to go round the boat is too short.

"It would be better if the tour lasted longer, so we could enjoy it more. Now, it feels like we're hurried to leave."

The visit's organising committee earlier said that around 1,000 people can tour the vessel each day.