Ulaanbaatar
China Matters explored the World’s Largest Radio Telescope FAST
Society
FAST, or the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio
Telescope, is the
largest radio telescope in the world. It is not only an achievement of Chinese
astronomical science and technology, but marks an important step in the
astronomical exploration of mankind.
Chinese
scientist Nan Rendong first proposed the idea of building FAST in 1994. In the
following 12 years, Nan and his team screened out 391 potential hollows in the
mountains of Guizhou. Finally, they selected a unique
site that was most suitable for the construction of FAST. This site is free from nearly any
interference of human activity signals. And there are many sunken limestone
caves which form a natural “sinkhole” that can support the astronomical
equipment.
To
improve the flexibility of the telescope, Chinese scientists independently
developed
an
automatic reflector, which can adjust the cable net structure to enable FAST to
automatically capture signals from outer space.
After FAST
began operating in 2017, more and more scientists, from both China and abroad, have come to
Guizhou. As a big fan
of space exploration, British vlogger Oli Barrett set off on a trip to explore
FAST. He was astonished by the massive radio telescope and touched by the story
of Chinese scientist Nan Rendong who had devoted his whole life to the advancement
of science.
Contact:
Zeng Wei
Tel：008610-68996566
E-mail：milkandwater@163.com
YouTube
Link: https://youtu.be/tp3CEcG18nc
