On February 14, the launch of the second phase of the "China Compound Eye", a large-scale distributed aperture deep space detection radar project led by Beijing Institute of Technology, was held in Yunyang County, Chongqing. Long Teng, president of Beijing Institu of Technology and academician of the CAE Member, Fan Bangkui, academician of the CAE Member, Wang Shafei, academician of the CAE Member, Zhang Zhaotian, former executive deputy director of the Information Science Department of the National Natural Science Foundation, Zhang Anjiang, vice mayor of Chongqing Municipal Government, Ling Fan, deputy secretary-general of Chongqing Municipal Government, Ming Ju, secretary and director of the Party Committee of Chongqing Science and Technology Bureau, Qin Changde, secretary of the Party Committee of Yunyang County, Li Maotao, county head, member of the Standing Committee of the Party Committee of Beijing Institute of Technology Vice President Wang Bo and the heads of relevant departments and colleges of the university, as well as the heads of relevant departments of Chongqing Municipality attended the event.

The "China Compound Eye" project, led by Beijing Institute of Technology, plans to build the world's farthest detection radar in Chongqing, to meet the major national needs of near-Earth asteroid defense, space situational awareness and other major scientific research in the world, such as the habitability of the earth, planet formation and other cutting-edge scientific research through high-resolution observation of asteroids, spacecraft, the moon, terrestrial planets and Jupiter Galileo satellites, It is of great significance for China to build a community with a shared future for mankind, build a powerful aerospace country and maintain national security.

Rendering of Phase II deployment of "China Compound Eye" project

The "Large-scale Distributed Aperture Deep Space Exploration Radar Project", as the second phase of the "China Compound Eye" project, will land on Zhongzhou Island, Longjiao Town, Yunyang County, Chongqing, covering a total area of more than 300 mu. It will build 25 30-meter aperture radars to detect and image asteroids tens of thousands of kilometers away, providing important support for China's near-Earth asteroid impact defense and planetary scientific research. The project is planned to be completed in 2025.

Zhang Anjiang announced the commencement of construction.

Long Teng said in his speech that the official launch of the second phase of the "China Compound Eye" project marked that the "large-scale distributed aperture deep space detection radar project" will enter a new research stage, and is also an important milestone in the long-term and in-depth cooperation between Beijing Institute of Technology and Chongqing. The project will create a new business card of Chongqing Radar Astronomical City, comprehensively promote the development of high-end industries such as big data, electronic information and satellite internet in Chongqing and Yunyang County, drive the rapid development of science popularization and regional tourism, and make an important contribution to the economic prosperity and social progress of Chongqing and Yunyang County.

In addition, at the commencement ceremony, Qin Changde and Wang Shafei delivered speeches respectively. Qin Changde said that the "large-scale distributed aperture deep space detection radar project" is a major scientific and technological infrastructure project focusing on the world's scientific and technological frontier and strengthening the systematic layout of national strategic scientific and technological forces. Yunyang County will spare no effort to "escort" the project. Wang Shafei said that the completion of the "China Compound Eye" radar will promote the breakthrough change and leapfrog development of radar technology. It is hoped that Beijing Institute of Technology and its partners will give full play to their research advantages, constantly make new breakthroughs and achieve new leaps, and provide key support for major national needs.

Four radars built in the first phase of the "China Compound Eye" project

The "China Compound Eye" project has been constructed in three phases. The first phase, the "distributed radar astrometry verification test field", is located in Mingyue Mountain, Liangjiang New District, Chongqing, and consists of four 16-meter aperture radars. The construction was completed in December 2022. At the time of startup and operation, China's first three-dimensional radar image of the lunar crater foundation was successfully taken. After the completion of the second phase of the project, the third phase of the "China Compound Eye" project plans to expand the number of radar units to 100. With the continuous progress of the construction of "China's compound eye", it will not only greatly expand the boundary of human radar deep space detection, but also make China maintain the world's leading position in the field of deep space detection radar for a long time.