Toward a Power of Planetary Science from a Gaint of Deep Space Exploration

Authors

WAN Weixing, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
WEI Yong, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
GUO Zhengtang, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China
XU Yigang, University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China; Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Guangzhou 510640, China
PAN Yongxin, Institute of Geology and Geophysics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100029, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100049, China

Keywords

deep space exploration; planetary science; first level disciplines; national strategy

Document Type

Article

Abstract

It has been four hundred years since Galileo first used telescope to kick-start the scientific observation of the universe in 1609. In 1959, the Soviet Union's Luna 2 arrived at the Moon for the first time in human's history, which started the era of deep space exploration. Ten years after, the United States landed the first astronauts on the lunar surface during the historic Apollo 11 mission in 1969, which led to the born of planetary science. Looking back to the sixty-years' history of human's deep space explorations, there were two upsurges of exploration led by the Soviet Union and the United States, respectively. The Soviet Union was leading in the space race in the beginning but they went downhill later on, leaving them a country with strong deep space exploration program only to the past. In contrast, the United States became a country with strong deep space exploration program and has been a leader of the world in the planetary science field since then. Exploring the vast universe is all human being's dream. As a growing country with rapid developing deep space exploration program, how China paves a way to build a strong planetray science program with China's characteristics based on Chinese national situation? Here we look into the history, study the present status, and think of future, and we provide authors' perspectives on this question:vigorously cultivate planetary science talents and realize science leading deep space exploration as soon as possible.

First page

748

Last Page

755

Language

Chinese

Publisher

Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences

References

Dale P C, Joseph W C. The beginnings of the division for planetary sciences of the American Astronomical Society.[2019-05-31]. https://dps.aas.org/history/chamberlain_cruikshank_1999.

Burns J A. The four hundred years of planetary science since Galileo and Kepler. Nature, 2010, 466:575-584.

Harvey B. Russian Planetary Exploration History, Development, Legacy and Prospects. New York: SpringerVerlag, 2007.

Wei Y, Yao Z, Wan W. China's roadmap for planetary exploration, Nature Astronomy, 2018, 2:346-348.

廖政军.美国推进深空探索战略.人民日报, 2017-03-27(21).

胡泽曦.美国"太空军"计划遭质疑.人民日报, 2018-08-17(21).

习近平谈航天: 星空浩瀚无比, 探索永无止境.[2019-02-21]. http://cpc.people.com.cn/n1/2019/0221/c164113-30852331.html.

中共中央国务院中央军委对探月工程嫦娥四号任务圆满成功的贺电.人民日报, 2019-01-12(1).

Recommended Citation

Weixing, WAN; Yong, WEI; Zhengtang, GUO; Yigang, XU; and Yongxin, PAN (2019) "Toward a Power of Planetary Science from a Gaint of Deep Space Exploration," Bulletin of Chinese Academy of Sciences (Chinese Version): Vol. 34 : Iss. 7 , Article 2.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.16418/j.issn.1000-3045.2019.07.003
Available at: https://bulletinofcas.researchcommons.org/journal/vol34/iss7/2