502 Aerospace Science and Technology Fifth Academy： Standing at the forefront of scientific research

Cctv newsOn October 17th, China’s manned spacecraft Shenzhou XI was successfully launched and rendezvous and docked with Tiangong-2 Space Laboratory. Among them, the guidance, navigation and control system of spacecraft developed by China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, No.502 Institute of the Fifth Academy, is the key to rendezvous and docking and the stable operation of spacecraft in orbit. I will introduce you to this team that has won the national advanced grass-roots party organization.

　　　　　　 The guidance, navigation and control system of spacecraft, called GNC for short, undertakes all the motion control tasks of spacecraft from takeoff to on-orbit execution, as well as the return of some spacecraft. Since the combined flight of Tiangong-2 and Shenzhou-11 began, the researchers of Institute 502 have been under high pressure for 24 hours, closely monitoring the health status of Tiangong-2 and Shenzhou-11.

　　　　　　 In the vast universe, the two spacecraft have to go through hundreds of thousands of kilometers of chasing, approaching at a speed about 8 times faster than bullets, and finally docking. Such a meeting needs a pair of sensitive "eyes", and the 502 Institute has undertaken this important task. The "Eye of the Sky" they developed — — A new generation of rendezvous and docking optical imaging sensor has performed well in this rendezvous and docking.

　　　　　　 The technical lead of "Eye of the Sky" comes not only from the efforts of scientific researchers, but also from the consistent party building activities of 502 institutes. Here, there is a "Space Control Doctor Team" composed of 40 doctors, 32 of whom are party member. They are responsible for the guidance, navigation and control system design of most satellites launched by China, and such research often takes more than ten years or even decades to produce results.

　　　　　　 As an advanced grass-roots party organization in China, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation has 33 party branches under the 502 Institute of the Fifth Academy, with the number of party member reaching 1,049. They have played a major role in China’s major national special projects such as manned spaceflight, lunar exploration and Beidou navigation, and have achieved a large number of world-class independent innovation achievements.