October 31 is a day worthy of the remembrance of thousands of people. On this day 12 years ago, Qian Xuesen, the founder of the "two bombs and one star", died in Beijing at the age of 98.
This scientist, who was placed under house arrest in the United States for 5 years and only wanted to return to China, had a great and glorious life.
In 1911, Qian Xuesen was born in Shanghai, and his father Qian Junfu had high hopes for him from an early age, hoping that he would succeed in his studies and serve the country. Coupled with the harsh social reality at that time, Qian Xuesen learned scientific knowledge more and more attentively.
In 1929, Qian Xuesen was admitted to the university and began to study railway engineering. After graduating from undergraduate, he successfully obtained a place in the United States from Tsinghua University, but he did not continue his studies in railway engineering, but chose to enter the Department of Aeronautics of MIT in the United States.
There, he met the scientist von Carmen and studied under the other side. Under von Carmen's direction, he soon became a sought-after figure in American science.
After Qian Xuesen finished his doctoral program, he went from assistant professor to professor in just a few years. He became a tenured professor at MIT at the age of 35, and it may take others more than 20 years to achieve such achievements.
Not only that, Qian Xuesen was also a scientific adviser to the US government at that time, not only free access to the Pentagon, but also was awarded the rank of colonel.
In the years of working in the United States, he never forgot his motherland and always paid attention to the news of his motherland.
On October 1, 1949, the People's Republic of China was founded. After Qian Xuesen learned of this, he immediately decided to resign from all his posts in the United States and return to the motherland to contribute to the development of the motherland.
However, Qian Xuesen's return to China did not go as smoothly as expected, and after learning that he insisted on returning to China, the US side seized his luggage on the grounds that it involved confidential documents and detained him on a heavily guarded island.
In fact, the items seized were nothing more than private handwriting and books. After Qian Xuesen was released on bail, he was still restricted by the US side of his personal freedom, could not leave Los Angeles, and had to accept summonses from relevant departments at any time.
In the face of interrogation by US officials, Qian Xuesen's answer was only one: "I will certainly be loyal to my motherland!" ”
In June 1955, when the incident took a turn for the worse, Qian Xuesen and his family evaded tracking, wrote down their current predicament on a piece of cigarette paper, and handed the letter back to China through his taishigong.
After many efforts, Qian Xuesen finally embarked on the road of "going home" with his family. Shortly after returning to China, someone asked him: "Can Chinese make missiles?" ”
At that time, Qian Xuesen was holding his breath, and in the face of this question, he replied with a loud voice: "Why can't foreigners do it, can't Chinese?" Are we a little shorter than them? ”
At that time, China had just experienced the baptism of war and natural disasters, and the country was in ruins. Although we could not even make a washing machine at that time, under the leadership of Qian Xuesen, we set up a research institute and successfully launched the first missile independently developed by our country.
In addition, Qian Xuesen also set several firsts for China in his lifetime. The first artificial satellite, the first power submarine, the first submarine underwater missile launch, etc., are inseparable from his hard work.
Until his old age, Qian Xuesen was still worried about the motherland's aerospace industry in his heart, and the astronauts did not forget his efforts. From 2003 to 2009, before Qian Xuesen's death, every astronaut who returned from space would visit Qian Xuesen at his home and report good news to him.
Five years to return to China, ten years of "two bombs" into. Qian Xuesen once said that his career and destiny are in China. As he said, he spent his life repaying his love for his country.
Some of the materials are synthesized from CCTV News, the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League, Xinhua Net, etc
Editor: Lin Yang