Cheng Kaijia (; 3 August 1918 – 17 November 2018), also known as Kai Chia Cheng, was a Chinese nuclear engineer and

nuclear physicist Nuclear physics is the field of physics that studies atomic nuclei and their constituents and interactions, in addition to the study of other forms of nuclear matter. Nuclear physics should not be confused with atomic physics, which studies the ...

. He was a pioneer and key figure in Chinese nuclear weapon development. He is known as one of the founding fathers of Two Bombs, One Satellite.

Life

Cheng was born in Wujiang,

Jiangsu Jiangsu is a coastal Provinces of the People's Republic of China, province in East China. It is one of the leading provinces in finance, education, technology, and tourism, with its capital in Nanjing. Jiangsu is the List of Chinese administra ...

in 1918. He graduated from the Department of Physics of

Zhejiang University Zhejiang University (ZJU) is a public university, public research university in Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China. It is affiliated with the Ministry of Education (China), Ministry of Education. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and D ...

in 1941. In 1946, he went to the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

to study at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

, obtaining a

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

in 1948 under advisor

Max Born Max Born (; 11 December 1882 – 5 January 1970) was a German-British theoretical physicist who was instrumental in the development of quantum mechanics. He also made contributions to solid-state physics and optics, and supervised the work of a ...

. He then became a researcher in the UK. Cheng returned to the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

in 1950. He was an

associate professor Associate professor is an academic title with two principal meanings: in the North American system and that of the ''Commonwealth system''. In the ''North American system'', used in the United States and many other countries, it is a position ...

at Zhejiang University, he then went to

Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...

in 1952, where he became an associate professor in

Nanjing University Nanjing University (NJU) is a public university in Nanjing, Jiangsu, China. It is affiliated and sponsored by the Ministry of Education. The university is part of Project 211, Project 985, and the Double First-Class Construction. The univers ...

, and was later promoted to full professorship. Cheng was a pioneer of Chinese nuclear technology and played an important role in the development of the first Chinese

atomic bomb A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission (fission or atomic bomb) or a combination of fission and fusion reactions (thermonuclear weapon), producing a nuclear expl ...

. He first calculated out the inner temperature and pressure for an atomic bomb blast in China. His calculation was an extremely heavy task and nearly manual, because during that time China did not have any

computer A computer is a machine that can be Computer programming, programmed to automatically Execution (computing), carry out sequences of arithmetic or logical operations (''computation''). Modern digital electronic computers can perform generic set ...

or even

calculator An electronic calculator is typically a portable electronic device used to perform calculations, ranging from basic arithmetic to complex mathematics. The first solid-state electronic calculator was created in the early 1960s. Pocket-si ...

. He also solved the mechanism of the inner explosion, which could support the design of the bomb. He was the chief director for many nuclear weapon test fields/bases and their explosion processes. Cheng was elected to the

Chinese Academy of Sciences The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS; ) is the national academy for natural sciences and the highest consultancy for science and technology of the People's Republic of China. It is the world's largest research organization, with 106 research i ...

in 1980. He was also a standing member of the Science and Technology Committee, Chinese National Nuclear Industry Corporation. He was former

vice-president A vice president or vice-president, also director in British English, is an officer in government or business who is below the president (chief executive officer) in rank. It can also refer to executive vice presidents, signifying that the vi ...

of the Nuclear Weapons Research Institute, and the deputy chief director of the Nuclear Weapons Research Institute, People's Republic of China. In 1999, he was awarded "Two Bombs and One Satellite Meritorious Award" by President

Jiang Zemin Jiang Zemin (17 August 1926 – 30 November 2022) was a Chinese politician who served as General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party, general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) from 1989 to 2002, as Chairman of the Central Mil ...

for his contribution on atomic bomb and hydrogen bomb. In July 2017,

Chairman The chair, also chairman, chairwoman, or chairperson, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the gro ...

Xi Jinping Xi Jinping, pronounced (born 15 June 1953) is a Chinese politician who has been the general secretary of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and Chairman of the Central Military Commission (China), chairman of the Central Military Commission ...

awarded Cheng the Order of August First, the highest military award of People's Republic of China. He died on 17 November 2018, three months after his 100th birthday.

References

External links

ChinaVitae - the biography highlight of Cheng Kaijia

Holeung Ho Lee Foundation (HHLF)
AWARDEE OF TECHNOLOGICAL SCIENCES PRIZE - CHENG KAIJIA (Abstract)

Nuclear weapon pioneer - Academician Cheng Kaijia {{DEFAULTSORT:Cheng, Kaijia 1918 births 2018 deaths Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Chinese men centenarians Chinese nuclear engineers Chinese nuclear physicists Educators from Suzhou Engineers from Jiangsu Members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences Academic staff of Nanjing University Physicists from Jiangsu Scientists from Suzhou Zhejiang University alumni Highest Science and Technology Award winners

Life

See also

References

External links