Sun Jiadong


Sun Jiadong is a Chinese aerospace engineer who is an expert in carrier rocket and satellite technology. He has long served as a leader of Chinese satellite projects, and is currently the chief designer for the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program. Sun is a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and of the International Academy of Astronautics.

Early life

Sun enrolled in the Harbin Institute of Technology to begin preparatory courses in Russian when he was 18.
Later he transferred to the automotive department. Around the time of the Chinese air force formation, he was chosen to join the army as a Russian translator. In 1951, Sun and 29 other soldiers were sent to study aircraft engines at the Zhukovsky Air Force Academy in the Soviet Union. In 1958, Sun graduated "with highest honor" and returned to China.

Career

After returning to China, Sun served in the Fifth Research Institute of the Ministry of National Defense, conducting missile research. In 1967, he was appointed by Qian Xuesen to restructure the staff for satellite research. In addition to being in charge of the general design project for China’s first satellite, he also worked as the technical superintendent and general designer for both China’s first remote sensing satellite and recoverable satellite. He was also the chief designer of a second generation of special application satellites, such as communication, meteorological, and earth resource detecting satellites, as well as the Beidou-2 navigation system.
During the Cultural Revolution, Sun was appointed as the chief scientist of the Chinese satellite project. On April 24, 1970, the first Chinese space satellite, Dong Fang Hong I, was successfully launched. On March 3, 1971 the satellite "Shi Jian I" was launched. In 1975, China's first returning satellite was successfully launched. In 1984, China's first synchronized experimental communication satellite, Dong Fang Hong II was launched. Sun was the chief designer of all of them.
He was elected Member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences in 1991.
Since 2003, he has been the chief designer for the Chinese Lunar Exploration Program.

Awards