https://www.scmp.com/rss/144236/feed Stephen Chen is the SCMP's science news editor. He investigates major research projects in China, a new power house of scientific and technological innovation, and their impact to humanity. Stephen has produced a large number of exclusive stories on China research, some highly controversial or shrouded in secrecy. He has been with the SCMP since 2006. en https://assets.i-scmp.com/static/img/icons/scmp-meta-1200x630.png https://www.scmp.com Stephen Chen Stephen Chen China’s unmanned submersibles now rank as the world’s largest, with last year’s military parade showcasing two models (HSU001 and AJX002) approaching 20 metres (66 feet) in length. Satellite imagery analysed by Western media also revealed a classified variant exceeding 40 metres at a naval installation, triggering international concern – particularly in the United States. These dimensions created a brand new class of drones known as extra-extra-large uncrewed underwater vehicles (XXLUUVs). They... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3348766/china-not-targeting-us-west-coast-ultra-large-underwater-drones-lead-scientist?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3348766/china-not-targeting-us-west-coast-ultra-large-underwater-drones-lead-scientist?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 05 Apr 2026 01:00:13 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Chinese scientists and engineers are developing a smart, ultra-small hypersonic glide missile that can be fired from an 80mm (3.4-inch) anti-aircraft gun. Upon leaving the barrel, the missile reaches a speed close to Mach 6, far faster than a conventional anti-aircraft shell. This allows it to strike fighter jets or drones more than 20km (12 miles) away, even at altitudes around 10,000 metres (32,800 feet). Because of its tremendous speed and small size, an enemy aircraft may only detect the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3342577/china-developing-mini-hypersonic-glide-missiles-can-be-fired-80mm-naval-gun?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3342577/china-developing-mini-hypersonic-glide-missiles-can-be-fired-80mm-naval-gun?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 06 Feb 2026 13:00:20 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen At the Northwest Institute of Nuclear Technology in Xian, Shaanxi province, sits an unremarkable-looking device called the TPG1000Cs. It could become Starlink’s worst nightmare. The TPG1000Cs is the world’s first compact driver for a high-power microwave (HPM) weapon, capable of delivering an extraordinary 20 gigawatts of power for up to one full minute. Measuring just four metres long (13 feet) and weighing only five tonnes, it is compact enough to be mounted on trucks, warships, aircraft or... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3342443/chinese-scientists-build-world-first-20gw-microwave-weapon-can-fire-60-second-bursts?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3342443/chinese-scientists-build-world-first-20gw-microwave-weapon-can-fire-60-second-bursts?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 05 Feb 2026 11:00:09 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen A rail system that accelerates heavy objects faster than the speed of sound using pure electromagnetic force has been operating in the eastern Chinese city of Jinan for more than two years. But one of the biggest mysteries remains: how does it stay in control? The sonic boom the system generates at ground level could blind or wreck traditional sensors, while the slightest miscalculation due to missing data could mean disaster at supersonic speeds. The system, known as the electromagnetic sledge,... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3340516/flying-blind-mach-1-how-china-bringing-worlds-first-supersonic-rail-life?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3340516/flying-blind-mach-1-how-china-bringing-worlds-first-supersonic-rail-life?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 26 Jan 2026 04:00:13 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen A new Chinese military special-ops drone has shown unprecedented accuracy in live-fire tests, hitting a human-sized target with every shot while using a standard infantry assault rifle. The drone fired 20 single rounds while hovering at a height of 10 metres (3.2 feet) and a distance of 100 metres from the human-sized target, a standard 50cm by 50cm (about 20 by 20 inches) chest board. The drone achieved a 100 per cent hit rate during flight trials, according to a peer-reviewed study published... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3340113/chinese-army-rifle-wielding-drone-gets-100-hit-rate-100-metre-range-shooting-test?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3340113/chinese-army-rifle-wielding-drone-gets-100-hit-rate-100-metre-range-shooting-test?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 25 Jan 2026 10:00:09 +0000 Victoria Bela,Stephen Chen Victoria Bela,Stephen Chen Four Chinese groups are racing to build global satellite communications infrastructure to challenge the considerable head start made by US tech billionaire Elon Musk’s Starlink. The two leaders for China so far are the central-government-backed GuoWang and Shanghai-backed Qianfan. They have the most satellites in orbit and plans to eventually deploy more than 10,000 apiece. Carmaker Geely’s Geespace also has satellites in space. The fourth group, Hongqing Technology, 48 per cent owned by... https://www.scmp.com/plus/news/china-future-tech/aerospace/article/3340638/chinese-rivals-musks-starlink-wrestle-rocket-constraints?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/news/china-future-tech/aerospace/article/3340638/chinese-rivals-musks-starlink-wrestle-rocket-constraints?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 21 Jan 2026 04:45:12 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Northwestern Polytechnical University has conducted what could be China’s first openly reported autonomous aerial refuelling flight test, according to scientists involved in the project. Two unidentified unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) were used in the refuelling tests. One served as the tanker with a refuelling pod and the other as the receiver. In high-speed formation flights, the receiver autonomously located, tracked and docked with the tanker under extreme conditions using a highly robust... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3336988/landmark-air-refuelling-test-extends-chinas-drone-swarm-delivery-range-us-homeland?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3336988/landmark-air-refuelling-test-extends-chinas-drone-swarm-delivery-range-us-homeland?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 19 Dec 2025 12:00:10 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen When it comes to building next-generation stealth jets, experience is the foundation of speed, reliability and combat readiness. Handing this critical job to a company with no stealth fighter experience could significantly delay progress and hand competitors a strategic gift. This is an open message from Yang Shuifeng, a lead designer of China’s cutting-edge stealth fighters. “The experience and capability of the research and development team cannot start from zero,” Yang, senior engineer and... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3336210/win-without-fight-how-china-fast-tracked-j-36-left-us-years-behind-sixth-gen-jet-race?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3336210/win-without-fight-how-china-fast-tracked-j-36-left-us-years-behind-sixth-gen-jet-race?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 12 Dec 2025 13:00:10 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Over 2,000 years ago, in a secluded bath chamber along the banks of the Nile, Queen Cleopatra of Egypt may have reached for an unlikely luxury: a fibrous, spongelike gourd – the loofah. This porous plant was prized by ancient Egyptian royalty as a natural exfoliant, a symbol of purity and refinement. Light as a feather, yet strong and intricately structured, the loofah scrubbed away impurities – both physical and spiritual – in rituals that blended hygiene with holiness. Today, this unassuming... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3334229/not-just-scrub-how-cleopatras-bath-loofah-may-help-pla-jets-vanish-radar?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3334229/not-just-scrub-how-cleopatras-bath-loofah-may-help-pla-jets-vanish-radar?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 26 Nov 2025 14:00:12 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen When Russian forces rolled into Ukraine in early 2022, one of the first moves by Kyiv was sending a post to Elon Musk on X: Ukraine needs satellite internet. Within days, thousands of Starlink terminals arrived, restoring command and control across the battlefield despite Russia’s best efforts to black out communications. Moscow initially tried to jam the signals – and reportedly had some success. But when SpaceX quietly updated its software and reconfigured the constellation, many Russian... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3333523/chinese-researchers-simulate-large-scale-electronic-warfare-against-elon-musks-starlink?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3333523/chinese-researchers-simulate-large-scale-electronic-warfare-against-elon-musks-starlink?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 22 Nov 2025 22:00:10 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen China is building a mega science infrastructure that could add fuel to the global maritime power race: a floating artificial island engineered to withstand nuclear blasts. This 78,000-tonne, semi-submersible twin-hull platform is the world’s first mobile, self-sustaining artificial island. With a displacement rivalling the People’s Liberation Army Navy’s new Fujian aircraft carrier and the capacity to house 238 occupants for four months without resupply, the facility will be able to project... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3333501/china-building-worlds-first-floating-artificial-island-nuclear-proof-bunker?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3333501/china-building-worlds-first-floating-artificial-island-nuclear-proof-bunker?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 20 Nov 2025 13:00:10 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen In Wufeng Tujia autonomous county, Hubei province, the rugged beauty of central China masks the region’s long-standing isolation. Its steep terrain and dense forests have long hindered transport, stifling growth and keeping communities cut off both physically and economically. But a new force is now reshaping the landscape – with dynamite, drilling rigs and lines of code. The Yangcun Tunnel in Wufeng is part of a high-speed rail line designed to bring 350km/h (217mph) trains into one of China’s... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3332736/central-china-ai-telling-humans-how-build-high-speed-rail-tunnel?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3332736/central-china-ai-telling-humans-how-build-high-speed-rail-tunnel?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 19 Nov 2025 04:00:10 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen China has discovered a rare gold deposit in the Kunlun Mountains near the western border of Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, according to government geologists involved in the survey. Initial estimates suggest its total gold reserves could exceed 1,000 tonnes. “The outline of a thousand-tonne-scale gold belt in West Kunlun, Xinjiang, is now taking shape,” wrote He Fubao, a senior engineer with the Kashgar Geological Team, and his colleagues in a paper published on November 4 in the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3332600/china-hits-third-1000-tonne-gold-belt-year-holds-all-treasures?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3332600/china-hits-third-1000-tonne-gold-belt-year-holds-all-treasures?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 15 Nov 2025 02:00:09 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Chinese military scientists have released the field test results of a rare simulated “dirty bomb” attack, showing the potential of a novel defence method that could stop nuclear fallout before it spreads. The research, conducted by the Joint Logistic Support Force University of Engineering and the Rocket Force Research Institute, explores how an advanced airborne system similar to weather modification could rapidly suppress and contain deadly radioactive smoke clouds after a radiological... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3331857/pla-team-simulates-dirty-bomb-fallout-rare-field-test-nuclear-tension-heats?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3331857/pla-team-simulates-dirty-bomb-fallout-rare-field-test-nuclear-tension-heats?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 09 Nov 2025 14:00:17 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Particle beams – streams of atoms or subatomic particles accelerated to nearly the speed of light – have been the holy grail of space warfare. The idea is simple: fire a tightly focused beam of high-energy particles at an enemy satellite or missile, damaging it through sheer kinetic and thermal energy. But turning this vision into reality has remained out of reach. One critical reason is power. To work, a particle beam weapon needs not just massive amounts of energy, but also extreme precision... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3331752/china-builds-advanced-satellite-power-system-particle-beam-and-other-space-weapons?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3331752/china-builds-advanced-satellite-power-system-particle-beam-and-other-space-weapons?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 08 Nov 2025 10:00:20 +0000 Frank Chen,Stephen Chen,Dannie Peng Frank Chen,Stephen Chen,Dannie Peng China is leading the way in nuclear power, with huge plans to boost its generating capacity and cutting-edge scientific breakthroughs. About half of the world’s under-construction nuclear power plants are in China as the country works to boost electricity production while still meeting commitments under the Paris climate accord. The goal is to raise nuclear’s share of national power supply to 28 per cent by 2050 from about 5 per cent now. Chinese research has enhanced nuclear power, including a... https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3331870/chinas-nuclear-power-plans-match-rest-world-combined?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/plus/article/3331870/chinas-nuclear-power-plans-match-rest-world-combined?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 07 Nov 2025 04:35:08 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Chinese scientists and engineers have pushed far beyond a string of US military bases known as the second island chain, reaching a seamount in the western Pacific Ocean 2,000 metres (6,561 feet) below the surface to test a smart mining vehicle designed to harvest cobalt-rich deposits, gathering critical performance data. The robotic miner showed its ability to traverse rugged seabeds littered with cobalt crusts, autonomously adjusting its posture to avoid overturning or being... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3330984/china-crosses-us-2nd-island-chain-deep-sea-cobalt-mining-rover-western-pacific?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3330984/china-crosses-us-2nd-island-chain-deep-sea-cobalt-mining-rover-western-pacific?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 06 Nov 2025 13:00:13 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen China has unveiled critical details of a revolutionary cargo ship under development: a nuclear-powered vessel that can carry 14,000 standard shipping containers. But what makes this ship truly groundbreaking is that it will be powered by a thorium-based molten salt reactor (TMSR) with a thermal output of 200 megawatts – matching the power level of the S6W pressurised water reactor used in the US Navy’s most advanced Seawolf-class nuclear attack submarines. Unlike traditional nuclear reactors... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3331031/china-unveils-power-thorium-reactor-worlds-largest-cargo-ship?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3331031/china-unveils-power-thorium-reactor-worlds-largest-cargo-ship?utm_source=rss_feed Wed, 05 Nov 2025 15:00:09 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen An experimental reactor developed in the Gobi Desert by the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Shanghai Institute of Applied Physics has achieved thorium-to-uranium fuel conversion, paving the way for an almost endless supply of nuclear energy. The achievement makes the 2 megawatt liquid-fuelled thorium-based molten salt reactor (TMSR) the only operating example of the technology in the world to have successfully loaded and used thorium fuel. According to the academy, the experiment has provided... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3331312/china-reaches-energy-independence-milestone-breeding-uranium-thorium?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3331312/china-reaches-energy-independence-milestone-breeding-uranium-thorium?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 03 Nov 2025 14:00:09 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Chinese military scientists have unveiled a rare glimpse into one of the most advanced frontiers of aerospace technology: a prototype of a morphing hypersonic vehicle capable of flying at speeds exceeding Mach 5. The missile, revealed in a published peer-reviewed paper, features a pair of retractable wings – a groundbreaking design that allows it to dynamically adapt its aerodynamic profile mid-flight. When stowed inside the fuselage, the wings minimise drag for high-speed cruising. When... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3330973/pla-team-releases-photo-hypersonic-morphing-missile-can-change-shape-mach-5?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3330973/pla-team-releases-photo-hypersonic-morphing-missile-can-change-shape-mach-5?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 31 Oct 2025 15:00:07 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen For decades, China’s influence in Africa has been concentrated in the eastern part of the continent. In recent years, a clear westward expansion has emerged, drawing attention from the United States and several western European nations. Many analyses have framed this shift as geopolitically driven – a strategic effort by Beijing to erode Western nations’ traditional interests on the continent, with particular attention paid to political and military cooperation between China and West African... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3330354/science-drives-chinas-westward-expansion-africa?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3330354/science-drives-chinas-westward-expansion-africa?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 26 Oct 2025 08:00:14 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen When the Chinese government launched the “AI+” initiative in August, it was widely perceived as a new economic stimulus. However, observers may have underestimated Beijing’s true ambition. On October 10, senior officials and experts published a series of analyses in the official journal E-Government, offering the public its first comprehensive look at the initiative’s deeper strategic intent. Far from being merely an economic policy, “AI+” is a decade-long national blueprint designed to propel... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3329377/chinas-ai-plan-offers-citizens-infinite-hope-robot-companions-and-kids-2035?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3329377/chinas-ai-plan-offers-citizens-infinite-hope-robot-companions-and-kids-2035?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 20 Oct 2025 22:00:09 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Landlocked in the heart of Southeast Asia, Laos ranks among the world’s poorest nations. However, for over a decade, China invested heavily to build a dual-purpose passenger and freight railway through the thick rainforest between Kunming and Vientiane, the Laotian capital. This 1,000km (621-mile) rail line, with speeds of up to 200km/h (124 mph), has been operating quietly for four years. According to a Chinese government study released this month, this railway has become a critical conduit for... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3329355/potassium-railway-how-north-america-lost-trump-card-trade-war-china?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3329355/potassium-railway-how-north-america-lost-trump-card-trade-war-china?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 19 Oct 2025 00:00:11 +0000 Stephen Chen,Ling Xin Stephen Chen,Ling Xin Nobel Prize-winning theoretical physicist Chen-ning Yang died in Beijing on Saturday, weeks after marking his 103rd birthday. Yang died of illness, according to state news agency Xinhua. No details were given. He was often ranked alongside Albert Einstein as one of the 20th century’s greatest physicists. In 1954, Yang co-authored a set of equations with the American physicist Robert Mills that turned out to be as important to physics as Einstein’s theory of relativity. The resulting Yang–Mills... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3329496/chinese-nobel-prize-winning-physicist-chen-ning-yang-dies-aged-103?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3329496/chinese-nobel-prize-winning-physicist-chen-ning-yang-dies-aged-103?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 18 Oct 2025 04:23:49 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen The world has already seen China’s capability to detect stealth aircraft using optical satellites. For instance, the Jilin-1 commercial satellite constellation successfully tracked an F-22 fighter jet manoeuvring through clouds – a feat that showcased the potential of civilian satellite systems in military reconnaissance. However, optical cameras are inherently limited: they cannot operate at night and are easily obstructed by cloud cover, fog or other adverse weather conditions. In real combat... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3329199/chinas-new-space-borne-radar-tech-can-track-stealth-moving-targets-day-and-night-study?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3329199/chinas-new-space-borne-radar-tech-can-track-stealth-moving-targets-day-and-night-study?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 16 Oct 2025 14:00:09 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen China has deployed a working prototype of a global defence system similar to the United States’ proposed Golden Dome, while hailing a breakthrough in data processing technology for worldwide threat management, according to scientists involved in the project. Although the “distributed early warning detection big data platform” is still in its early stages of development, it can simultaneously monitor a thousand missiles fired at China from anywhere in the world, according to the developers. By... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3327224/china-fields-golden-dome-prototype?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3327224/china-fields-golden-dome-prototype?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 29 Sep 2025 22:00:08 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen China’s aerospace industry is undergoing a quiet but potentially game-changing manufacturing revolution that could make rockets and satellites as efficiently produced as cars, according to scientists involved in the project. Through a painful structural reform, the country’s state-owned space sector is adopting a new production philosophy known as the “final assembly pull” system, a model inspired by lean manufacturing principles seen in the car industry. This emerging system aims to... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3326060/space-pull-system-chinas-industrial-revolution-make-rockets-and-satellites-cars?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3326060/space-pull-system-chinas-industrial-revolution-make-rockets-and-satellites-cars?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 28 Sep 2025 14:00:07 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen The US military launched a covert strike on Iranian nuclear facilities in June, dropping several massive bunker-busting bombs on a single target. While US officials claimed the sites were completely destroyed, some reports suggested the core of these facilities might have survived. This scenario underscores a persistent challenge in modern warfare: even the most powerful conventional weapons may fail to eliminate deeply buried, hardened underground targets. But what if nuclear weapons were used... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3326757/chinese-army-engineers-run-first-triple-nuke-strike-experiment-lab?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3326757/chinese-army-engineers-run-first-triple-nuke-strike-experiment-lab?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 28 Sep 2025 10:00:13 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen In the Terminator films, humanity launches an all-out assault in 2029 on Skynet’s central node deep within Cheyenne Mountain – only to realise that the artificial intelligence has no single point of failure. Skynet is not a monolithic system, but a distributed, self-healing network, capable of surviving total infrastructure collapse and resurrecting itself almost instantly. Today, China appears to be building a real-world analogue – a highly resilient, AI-driven combat kill web composed of... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3326773/could-plas-ai-powered-kill-web-evolve-skynet?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3326773/could-plas-ai-powered-kill-web-evolve-skynet?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 26 Sep 2025 15:00:09 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Hidden within the granite wilderness of central China lies an antenna so vast it dwarfs New York City five times over – a 500-kilowatt electromagnetic leviathan originally built to whisper to submarines. Now, it is broadcasting China’s dominance in the global scramble for critical minerals. As nations race to secure lithium, cobalt and rare earths for green tech supremacy, Chinese geologists are deploying this monster – and its cousins – to detect ore and energy resources buried kilometres... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3325178/china-killing-race-critical-minerals-largest-antenna-earth?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3325178/china-killing-race-critical-minerals-largest-antenna-earth?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 22 Sep 2025 04:00:11 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Following several high-profile aeronautical production quality lapses in recent years, including a door falling off mid-flight and tooling left inside aircraft, the last thing any plane manufacturer wants is a missing bolt or any oversight that slips through manual checks. Enter the futuristic assembly line of C919, China’s first domestically developed large passenger jet. Leveraging a groundbreaking 5G-enabled industrial network system, the C919 smart mega factory in Shanghai is setting a new... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3326054/no-missing-bolts-glimpse-chinas-c919-smart-factory?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3326054/no-missing-bolts-glimpse-chinas-c919-smart-factory?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 21 Sep 2025 16:00:14 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Chinese naval researchers have detailed plans to construct a multilayered defence architecture designed to protect warships from saturation attacks by up to thousands of low-cost drones, responding to what they call an existential threat amplified by accessible commercial technology. The proposed “counter-swarm system”, likened by some experts to a digital-age Great Wall, would integrate satellites, AI-powered sensors and radical new weapons – including hypersonic missiles, lasers and microwave... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3325299/china-plans-build-naval-great-wall-fend-thousand-drone-swarm-attack?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3325299/china-plans-build-naval-great-wall-fend-thousand-drone-swarm-attack?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 19 Sep 2025 12:00:10 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Amid the roar of China’s military parade on September 3, a few trucks rolled through Tiananmen Square with camouflaged loads tagged “CJ-1000”. The trucks were hauling surface-launched hypersonic cruise missiles also known as Long Sword-1000s – weapons designed for ultra-long-range strikes on “system-node targets on the ground, at sea or in the air”, according to Chinese state media. China has not officially disclosed the detailed specifications of the CJ-1000. Though a new weapon must pass many... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3326010/how-deadly-cj-1000-worlds-first-hypersonic-plane-killer-pla-war-game-gives-hint?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3326010/how-deadly-cj-1000-worlds-first-hypersonic-plane-killer-pla-war-game-gives-hint?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 19 Sep 2025 02:00:16 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Targeting its overwhelming coal power capacity – enough to run the entire United States – China is investigating plans to convert retiring coal-fired plants into nuclear power stations. Driven by decarbonisation goals and land scarcity, this “Coal to Nuclear” (C2N) strategy would look to use retiring plants’ grid and water access for compact, meltdown-proof reactors, potentially offering a faster path to clean energy than building nuclear sites from scratch. And China could be the only country... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3325263/china-mulls-converting-coal-fired-power-plants-nuclear-facilities?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3325263/china-mulls-converting-coal-fired-power-plants-nuclear-facilities?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 15 Sep 2025 06:00:15 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen A new defence industry study from China suggests that artificial intelligence (AI) could soon make it extremely hard – even nearly impossible – for submarines to survive in a future naval conflict. The research, published in the peer-reviewed journal Electronics Optics & Control and led by senior engineer Meng Hao with the China Helicopter Research and Development Institute in August, unveiled for the first time an advanced AI-driven anti-submarine warfare (ASW) system capable of hunting even... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3325161/ai-could-cut-submarines-survival-chance-5-chinese-defence-scientists?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3325161/ai-could-cut-submarines-survival-chance-5-chinese-defence-scientists?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 14 Sep 2025 10:00:13 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen China has successfully flight-tested what could be the world’s first artificial intelligence-powered radar system for a military aircraft. According to the limited data disclosed, an AI-enhanced radar system aboard an unidentified aircraft achieved near-perfect target tracking performance despite facing advanced, sophisticated jamming. In the test, when conventional radar systems failed to maintain consistent contact, losing the target in around one-quarter of engagement time, the AI boosted the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3324437/ai-powered-radar-cannot-be-jammed-chinas-landmark-test-flight-result-suggests?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3324437/ai-powered-radar-cannot-be-jammed-chinas-landmark-test-flight-result-suggests?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 06 Sep 2025 12:00:09 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Four years after the USS Connecticut, one of the most advanced nuclear submarines in the US Navy, slammed into an uncharted seamount in the South China Sea, the site of that near-catastrophic grounding may now become a deadly minefield for future naval battles. Chinese military scientists are proposing to transform the dangerous underwater terrain where the Connecticut crashed into a strategically engineered kill zone, packed with powerful mines designed to exploit the very same acoustic blind... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3323577/how-china-could-turn-paracel-islands-submarine-kill-zone-south-china-sea?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3323577/how-china-could-turn-paracel-islands-submarine-kill-zone-south-china-sea?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 31 Aug 2025 08:00:12 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen In 2015, a US Navy F/A-18 pilot flying off the East Coast with the aircraft carrier USS Theodore Roosevelt encountered something inexplicable: an unidentified flying object shaped like a spindle, hovering above the clouds with no visible means of propulsion. Encoded as “Gimbal”, the footage – officially declassified in 2021 – ignited global speculation about unidentified aerial phenomena and prompted serious questions about advanced aerospace technology beyond known military capabilities. Now,... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3323565/china-unveils-vtol-drone-looks-ufo-gimbal-spotted-us-navy-pilots?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3323565/china-unveils-vtol-drone-looks-ufo-gimbal-spotted-us-navy-pilots?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 29 Aug 2025 06:21:08 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Chinese air force scientists have developed a revolutionary radar technology capable of rendering its airborne early warning platforms nearly undetectable to enemy electronic surveillance. Airborne early warning and control (AEW&C) aircraft – long considered indispensable yet vulnerable command nodes – have historically been high-value targets. Their powerful radar emissions, while essential for managing the battlespace, make them visible from hundreds of kilometres away. But the Chinese... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3322731/china-achieves-invisibility-tech-breakthrough-early-warning-aircraft?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3322731/china-achieves-invisibility-tech-breakthrough-early-warning-aircraft?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 26 Aug 2025 04:00:08 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Chinese defence researchers have unveiled a groundbreaking data link system that could decisively outpace Nato’s current military communications, tipping the balance of military power with high-speed warfare. Engineered for the extreme demands of large-scale hypersonic combat – where aircraft scream through the skies at Mach 5 and missiles hurtle forward at Mach 11 – the new network achieves time synchronisation accuracy within five nanoseconds, dwarfing the performance of Nato’s flagship Link... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3322598/chinas-hypersonic-warfare-data-link-could-dazzle-natos-war-machine-scientists?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3322598/chinas-hypersonic-warfare-data-link-could-dazzle-natos-war-machine-scientists?utm_source=rss_feed Sat, 23 Aug 2025 06:00:14 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Chinese aerospace engineers are revisiting a decades-old, largely abandoned aviation concept – the oblique rotating wing – and transforming it into a potential cornerstone of future warfare: an unstaffed hypersonic mother ship capable of flying at five times the speed of sound and unleashing a swarm of drones behind enemy lines. Drawing inspiration from Nasa’s quirky AD-1 experimental aircraft of the 1970s – a small jet-driven plane with a “scissor wing” that pivoted diagonally across the... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3321844/can-chinas-hypersonic-drone-carrier-bring-nasas-scissor-wing-dream-life?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3321844/can-chinas-hypersonic-drone-carrier-bring-nasas-scissor-wing-dream-life?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 17 Aug 2025 02:00:14 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen In a defence tech laboratory in Beijing, a research team powers up a vacuum tube about the size of a pistol. Inside, a stream of electrons surges through thin coiled wires, amplifying microwave pulses ranging from 8 to 18 gigahertz with more than 500 watts of output – performance metrics that until recently were only achievable in devices much bigger. It is the new heart of China’s advanced radar and electronic warfare systems – a miniaturised travelling-wave tube (TWT), and a symbol of how... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3322028/why-small-vacuum-tube-can-be-chinas-big-advantage-electronic-warfare?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3322028/why-small-vacuum-tube-can-be-chinas-big-advantage-electronic-warfare?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Aug 2025 11:00:08 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen In an aviation tech breakthrough that could change naval warfare, Chinese aerospace engineers have unveiled what could be the world’s first high-speed vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) drone powered by a jet engine. The sleek, runway-independent uncrewed aircraft can be launched from the decks of ordinary warships – even in rough seas – and transition seamlessly into a fast, long-range cruise flight. The drone, representing a radical departure from conventional drone designs, was developed by... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3321677/china-unveils-first-high-speed-vtol-jet-drone-makes-every-warship-aircraft-carrier?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3321677/china-unveils-first-high-speed-vtol-jet-drone-makes-every-warship-aircraft-carrier?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 15 Aug 2025 01:00:12 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022 satellite navigation signals were one of its first targets. The jamming started with civilian navigation systems, but within less than two weeks, military bands had been targeted as well. All satellite navigation systems in the war zone, including the US GPS system, the European Union’s Galileo, China’s Beidou and even Russia’s own Glonass, fell victim. Western powers, led by the United States, immediately launched a counter-jamming mission to stall... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3321548/chinese-military-researchers-seek-draw-electronic-warfare-lessons-ukraine-jamming?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3321548/chinese-military-researchers-seek-draw-electronic-warfare-lessons-ukraine-jamming?utm_source=rss_feed Tue, 12 Aug 2025 22:00:09 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Chinese scientists have unveiled a projectile launcher for use in space – a device designed to remove dangerous debris orbiting the Earth but with potential to also be used as a weapon. The compact and stealthy device draws on the principle of gunpowder propulsion dating back to 9th century China, but brings it into the new space age. It was jointly developed by aerospace engineers in Nanjing, Shanghai and Shenyang and unveiled last month in the peer-reviewed Chinese journal Acta Aeronautica et... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3321437/chinas-new-stealth-launcher-aimed-space-debris-can-it-also-be-used-weapon?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3321437/chinas-new-stealth-launcher-aimed-space-debris-can-it-also-be-used-weapon?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 11 Aug 2025 11:43:19 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen In Ukraine, about nine in 10 Russian drones have been shot down by advanced air defences, according to various estimates. Ukrainian air force data suggested that about 15 per cent of drones had penetrated its defences between April and June – rising from just 5 per cent previously. But a group of Chinese aerospace engineers and defence researchers have now proposed a radical technological enhancement for combat drones that may dramatically increase their ability to survive to nearly 90 per... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3320573/chinese-scientists-draw-ukraine-war-lessons-and-propose-upgrade-pla-drones?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3320573/chinese-scientists-draw-ukraine-war-lessons-and-propose-upgrade-pla-drones?utm_source=rss_feed Mon, 04 Aug 2025 01:00:19 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Chinese scientists have developed an advanced electronic warfare technique that can create a zone of electromagnetic calm, similar to the eye of a storm at the heart of an intense signal jamming environment. This groundbreaking innovation could allow Chinese military forces to disable enemy communications and navigation systems while protecting their own troops and allied networks from collateral disruption. The technology, still at an early stage with feasibility verified in computer... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3320354/chinese-scientists-say-they-can-create-storm-eye-pla-forces-electronic-warfare?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3320354/chinese-scientists-say-they-can-create-storm-eye-pla-forces-electronic-warfare?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 03 Aug 2025 02:00:08 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Scientists in northwest China have doubled the service life of high-temperature, high-pressure artillery barrels by refining a chromium plating technique first used by the Chinese military before 200BC. Bronze swords buried with the Terracotta Army of China’s first emperor, Qin Shi Huang, remained sharp and untarnished after more than 2,000 years underground. Microscopic analysis revealed a thin layer of chromium salts – just 10 to 15 micrometres thick – on their surfaces, protected by an... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3320219/chinese-scientists-double-artillery-gun-lifespan-2000-year-old-chromium-tech-upgrade?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3320219/chinese-scientists-double-artillery-gun-lifespan-2000-year-old-chromium-tech-upgrade?utm_source=rss_feed Fri, 01 Aug 2025 14:00:10 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen Chinese military scientists have revealed the design of a microwave weapon theoretically capable of firing 10 gigawatt power beams at a repeating rate of 126 million times per second. The inspiration for the blueprint can be traced back to an explosive quantum phenomenon first glimpsed in Soviet laboratories during the Cold War. The concept is rooted in the physics of “superradiance”, a design that promises unprecedented peak power, efficiency and firing speed – a combination that would mark a... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3319874/pla-unveils-10gw-microwave-weapon-blueprint-ultra-fast-firing-superradiance-tech?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3319874/pla-unveils-10gw-microwave-weapon-blueprint-ultra-fast-firing-superradiance-tech?utm_source=rss_feed Thu, 31 Jul 2025 14:00:09 +0000 Stephen Chen Stephen Chen In a discovery that could reshape the global balance of strategic mineral supply, Chinese geologists have uncovered a huge zirconium deposit in the Kubai Basin, on the northern fringe of the Tarim Basin in Xinjiang – a deadly stretch of arid land that may now become a new driver of China’s hi-tech military ambitions. The newly identified deposit, embedded within Cenozoic continental sedimentary layers dating to the Paleogene and Neogene periods, represents the first super-large zirconium... https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3319519/no-more-achilles-heel-hypersonics-race-china-zirconium-find-boosts-reserve-five-fold?utm_source=rss_feed https://www.scmp.com/news/china/science/article/3319519/no-more-achilles-heel-hypersonics-race-china-zirconium-find-boosts-reserve-five-fold?utm_source=rss_feed Sun, 27 Jul 2025 10:00:11 +0000