CHES: A Space-borne Astrometric Mission for the Detection of Habitable Planets of the Nearby Solar-type Stars

The Closeby Habitable Exoplanet Survey(CHES) mission is proposed to discover habitable-zone Earth-like planets of nearby solar-type stars(~10 pc away from our solar system) via microarcsecond relative astrometry.The major scientific objectives of CHES are:to search for Earth Twins or terrestrial planets in habitable zones orbiting100 FGK nearby stars;further to conduct a comprehensive survey and extensively characterize nearby planetary systems.The primary payload is a high-quality,low-distortion,high-stability telescope.The optical subsystem is a coaxial three-mirror anastigmat(TMA) with a 1.2 m-aperture,0°.44 × 0°.44 field of view and 500 nm-900 nm working wave band.The camera focal plane is composed of a mosaic of 81 scientific CMOS detectors each with4 k × 4 k pixels.The heterodyne laser interferometric calibration technology is employed to ensure microarcsecond level(1 μas) relative astrometry precision to meet the requirements for detection of Earth-like planets.The CHES satellite operates at the Sun-Earth L2 point and observes all the target stars for 5 yr.CHES will offer the first direct measurements of true masses and inclinations of Earth Twins and super-Earths orbiting our neighbor stars based on microarcsecond astrometry from space.This will definitely enhance our understanding of the formation of diverse nearby planetary systems and the emergence of other worlds for solar-type stars,and finally provide insights to the evolution of our own solar system.

True random coded photon counting Lidar

A true random coded photon counting Lidar system is proposed in this paper,in which a single photon detector acts as the true random sequence signal generator instead of the traditional function generator.Compared with the traditional pseudo-random coded method,the true random coded method not only improves the anti-crosstalk capability of the system,but more importantly,it effectively overcomes the adverse effect of the detector’s dead time on the ranging performance.The experiment results show that the ranging performance of the true random coded method is obviously better than that of the pseudo-random coded method.As a result,a three-dimensional scanning imaging of a model car is completed by the true random coded method.

Moderate Resolution Imaging Camera (MoRIC) of China’s First Mars Mission Tianwen-1

China's first Mars exploration mission will carry out comprehensive global surveys of the planet from data collected by instruments carried in orbit and roving on the planet itself.Goals of the mission include detailed inspections and surveys of key areas on the surface of Mars.One of the main scientific payloads installed on the orbiter is the moderate resolution camera.Its mission is to image the surface of Mars sufficiently to produce a global remote sensing image map of the planet,and to explore and record changes to the topography of Mars,including major geological structures,and to advance research on topography and geomorphology in general.The moderate resolution camera uses a lightweight and compact integrated design;its primary components are an optical module,a focal plane module,a camera control module,a power and interface module,a camera support module,a thermal control module,and a reference module.Radiometric calibration,color calibration,and geometric calibration have been carried out to ensure that the camera can acquire sufficient accurate data to complete mission goals.This paper introduces the camera's detection mission,its system composition,and its working principle;it also describes the camera's ground calibration tests and their results,and provides a reference for processing the camera's scientific data and for future applications.

CHES:An astrometry mission searching for nearby habitable planets

The Closeby Habitable Exoplanet Survey(CHES),a proposed space-borne mission to detect Earth-like planets orbiting 100 nearby solar-type stars(
10 pc or approximately 32 light years from the sun)via micro-arcsecond relative astrometry,is currently being considered by the Chinese Academy of Sciences as a possible space mission for future launch(Figure 1).The discovery of Earth-like planets(or Earth twins,planets with an orbit,mass,and environment similar to Earth)in the habitable zones around nearby solar-type stars will be another“giant leap for mankind”and help us begin to answer essential scientific questions such as“Arewe alone in the universe?”,“Is Earth unique?”,and“How do planets become the cradle of life?”Finding such planets could even enable future human visits and identify new habitable places to live.