World’s Largest Radio Telescope

Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical Telescope (FAST), independently developed by China, is the world’s largest radio telescope located in Guizhou Province. The telescope, which was put into use in September 2016, is as large as 30 soccer fields and helps humans explore the universe and search for extraterrestrial civilizations. Until now it has discovered 51 stars which bear features similar to pulsars, and 11 of them have been confirmed as new pulsars by observatories in other countries. Pulsar observation is an important task for FAST, which can be used to confirm the existence of gravitational radiation and black holes and help solve many other major questions in physics. Nan Rendong, the founding father of FAST, died of cancer at the age of 72 in September 2017. Nan had been in charge of the project since 1994, and most of the project’s main members are his students. Nan made an extraordinary contribution to China’s astronomy research. As the leading engineer, he drafted the plan, monitored the building process and overcame many technical troubles for the telescope. Usually, one person can only master one thing. However, Nan knew almost everything about the telescope. Nan’s spirit reflected his pet phrase: Refuse to be average.