New book marks fifth anniversary of China’s FAST

A new book has been published charting the history of China’s FAST, to mark the landmark facility’s fifth anniversary.

Written by Dr Bo Peng, Director of the Key Laboratory of FAST of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and former Deputy Director General of FAST Project Management Board, the book’s 500 pages reflect on the journey of FAST, from conception to birth, and details how it has become a leading instrument in radio astronomy.

Dr Peng, who was one of the founders of the FAST project, traces the development of the telescope through 300 pictures and rich first-hand information from the perspective of those who witnessed and participated in the whole process.

FAST’s history is inextricably linked to the SKA project, having evolved from a conceptual design for the SKA telescopes. While FAST went on to become a ground-breaking facility in its own right, this shared history has led to strong engagement between the two projects – and more generally China and the international SKA community – over the past 28 years, since those early concepts emerged in 1993.

The book cover features FAST and its suspended receiver cabin.

CREDIT: Dr Bo Peng

The publication highlights China’s radio astronomy history, and how the field has grown rapidly in recent years thanks to FAST. It details how the concept for the huge project was formed, the reasons behind its 500m size, why it was decided to locate the vast dish in a natural karst basin in Guizhou Province, and the complex logistics of building the telescope. The book also describes how FAST transformed the local landscape and supported local development through astro-tourism, resulting in a whole astronomy economy built around the telescope. Throughout FAST’s development, the visionary Chinese team interacted with their foreign counterparts, including those behind the 305m Arecibo radio telescope in Puerto Rico, and the chief designer of Germany’s Effelsberg 100m radio telescope; these interactions are recounted in the book, along with many other little-known anecdotes. Above all, as FAST celebrates five years of operations as one of the world’s leading telescopes, the book serves to acknowledge the contributions of those who helped to make it a reality.

“My colleagues and I couldn’t be more excited and proud to be part of the FAST journey,” Dr Peng says. “I hope this book will inspire the other participants, whether they are designers, builders or supporters, to share their memories and experiences of the FAST journey so that they can all be recorded, building up a more complete history of the project.”

By Dr. Jinxin Hao (National Astronomical Observatories, Chinese Academy Of Sciences)