He grabbed four days for China’s first Mars exploration and launch mission
-remembering "Tianwen No. 1" 01 commander Wang Guangyi
Photo courtesy of respondents
Character file
Wang Guangyi, graduated from the Automation Control Department of the School of Automation, Beijing Institute of Technology in July 1999. He is currently the Deputy Minister and Senior Engineer (Zhenggao) of the Launch Department of China Wenchang Space Launch Site; Long March 7 and Long March 5 two new generation launch vehicles, China The 01 commander of the first Mars exploration mission is mainly responsible for the overall planning, command decision-making and overall technical work of the rocket test launch. He has participated in more than 50 domestic and foreign satellite launch missions such as Beidou Networking and Chang'e-1, and served as the commander of the first flight of the Long March 7 rocket, the Tianzhou 1 cargo spacecraft and the Long March 5 missed launch mission 01.
At noon on July 23, the Long March 5 Yaosi carrier rocket successfully sent the first Mars exploration mission "Tianwen-1" probe into the scheduled orbit. China's exploration of Mars has opened a new chapter.
After confirming the successful launch of the rocket, 01 Commander Wang Guangyi was also completely relieved.
This is the fourth time that Wang Guangyi has served as the 01 commander. In his opinion, the mission process was tortuous, but fortunately, it ended successfully. One way to express excitement is to write poetry. Wang Guangyi wrote four poems in one go.
"Fat five will send Yingdou again, soaring to the sky to win the victory; travel hundreds of thousands of miles alone, and wait until the achievement is successful to repay the motherland." This is his expectation. "Wen to the sky on the way to ask the sky, bravely climb the summit spaceman; overcome difficulties and create miracles, five and four steps on the stars." This is his emotion.
In the live TV broadcast, the 01 commander that the audience can see is the one who shouted "fire" when the countdown counts down to 0 seconds. In fact, in order to fire and launch on time, 01 commander needs to do a lot of work in the early stage. This year is the 21st year that Wang Guangyi has worked in the space launch system.
The "big butler" who uses his brain, his mouth and his hands
Unlike the stubborn look in imagination, Wang Guangyi is talkative and sincere. Wang Guangyi does not conceal his emotions, nor does he shy away from the problems encountered in his work. When it comes to difficulties, he sighs; when it comes to results, he is also happy and his tone rises.
01 Commander is the chief steward of space launch missions. Wang Guangyi described that this post is "use your brain and your mouth but not your hands" and requires a lot of coordination and communication.
Space launch missions involve multi-system coordination such as launch site systems, rocket systems, payload systems, and measurement and control communication systems. When the rocket arrives at the launch site, the test and launch of the rocket are organized by the launch site system. Commander 01 is an important core post in the test launch process.
15 minutes before the launch of the rocket, all the passwords were collected at Commander 01. Wang Guangyi said that the rocket launch has 27 subsystems, and he mainly focuses on 11 of them. The sub-system commander reports to him the working status of each system, and after analysis and judgment, he gives the next step.
01 The commander has to do a lot of work in the early stage, so that the launch mission can be punctual. However, the biggest difficulty facing the "Tianwen-1" launch mission is precisely "on time."
Due to the postponement of the first flight of the Long March 5B carrier rocket for the pre-order mission, the preparation time for the Mars exploration mission is also shortened. Both launches use the same rocket launch platform, which will be subject to the impact of the rocket when it is launched, and will also withstand the test of high temperature ablation, which takes time to recover. It was originally planned to take 35 days to restore the rocket launch platform and 48 days for testing and final assembly. However, as a result, the earliest launch of "Tianwen-1" was also obtained on July 27, which is 4 days later than the best launch window of July 23. day.
Missing the optimal launch window means more fuel consumption, and also means less time for emergency response.
How to do? Wang Guangyi organized a preparation work plan for this mission, studied the recovery plan of the launch platform, and looked for short-term and restrictive factors in the process. Some jobs can be paralleled, and some jobs must be serialized, that is, to complete A to continue to complete B; find the unreasonable work arrangement, you can speed up the progress appropriately. In this process, the 01 commander must make suggestions, and organize and coordinate various system personnel to implement this suggestion.
After Wang Guangyi thoroughly understood the process, he played a series of combo punches, optimized the post-shoot recovery process, and finally grabbed 4 days.
Understand technology, take care of the overall situation, and have a "big heart"
In Wang Guangyi's view, the launch of the Long March 5 Yaosi carrier rocket is a "life and death battle."
It is highly anticipated. Moreover, if there is a mistake, you will miss the time window for Mars exploration that only opens once in 26 months.
In fact, before the rocket was officially launched, various problems occurred during the sub-system matching stage. Carry out data analysis and investigation time and time again, unearth hidden dangers time after time, test and report time after time...
"This is God's test of me. I want to pack lightly, let all levels rest assured of my state, and minimize the adverse effects." Wang Guangyi wrote in his notes.
01 Commander is an honor, a challenge, and even more a responsibility.
What kind of experience do you have to become a 01 commander?
Wang Guangyi said frankly that he is actually a "crossover player" and he has not served as a system commander. Before becoming the 01 commander, Wang Guangyi worked in the organizational command system, mainly in charge of planning, coordination and dispatch.
This is what the 01 commander needs, but at the technical level, he still lacks.
How to make up for shortcomings? Only learning. The rocket development unit was in Beijing. Therefore, from 2012 to 2014, the launch site sent staff to the development unit in batches, from program certification to key technology tackling, and from initial product to sample testing.
Wang Guangyi graduated from Beijing Institute of Technology with a bachelor's degree and majored in automatic control. He learned almost from scratch for the related knowledge of rocket power system.
The rocket development unit provided the learning staff with offices and various technical documents. During that time, they basically lived a two-point-one-line life, in addition to studying or studying every day. But Wang Guangyi did not find it boring and difficult. Because the time of studying is luxurious and happy.
"At that time, there was a very strong ability to panic, there were too many things to learn, and I was especially worried that the unit would suddenly call me back. When I went back, there would be no such learning time and environment." Wang Guangyi wanted to seize this opportunity for Lay a more solid foundation for yourself and move towards the goal of the 01 commander. "Being the 01 commander is our ultimate dream." He said.
On June 25, 2016, the Long March 7 carrier rocket flew for the first time. That time, Wang Guangyi became the 01 commander as he wished. "After the rocket was launched, I was so excited that I didn't close my eyes all night."
Later, with a new challenge, the "Fat Five" came. The Long March 5 is the rocket with the most advanced technology, the most complex system, and the largest carrying capacity in my country. In 2015, Wang Guangyi used his vacation time to study the Long March 5 liquid hydrogen liquid oxygen engine for more than a month to prepare for the future Long March 5 launch mission.
01 Commanders must not only be able to learn and understand technology, but also have to consider the overall situation and be able to communicate.
"Most of the problems in the test are to be coordinated and solved by the 01 commander." For example, two systems may compete for resources and time. How can a bowl of water be balanced so that both parties are satisfied without affecting work progress? "In short, you have to find a way to do things well. Rely on wisdom, emotional intelligence, personality charm... Anyway, it must be handled properly." Wang Guangyi said with a smile, this post is a comprehensive test of a person's comprehensive quality.
Worthy of myself, worthy of this career
Wang Guangyi has always had the habit of taking notes. What items have been tested today, what problems have occurred, and how to solve them; what work will be done tomorrow, which item will be done first, which item will be done later, and what guarantee conditions will be given... He wrote all clearly. "I will perform the task next time and look at the notes from the previous time to make it clearer."
In addition to the detailed work records, Wang Guangyi also talks to himself. He writes "personal autobiography", records work experience, and also writes poetry. From university to now, he has written more than 70,000 words.
In fact, when Wang Guangyi entered the aerospace system, it was somewhat dramatic. In 1999, he and another classmate who joined the company took the train for more than 40 hours from the bustling capital Beijing to Daliang Mountain in Xichang.
"No mental preparation at all." The desolation and remoteness in front of him gave Wang Guangyi a blow. At that time, the network was not well developed. Before joining the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, Wang Guangyi didn't even think about finding out what Xichang was.
But still stayed. One important reason is feelings. While in school, the strong atmosphere of serving the country with science and technology at Beijing Institute of Technology has been infecting Wang Guangyi. When they arrived in Xichang, young people like them also learned the deeds and spirit of the older generation of astronauts. "To speak of suffering, we are much better than them."
To do spaceflight requires dedication and sacrifice. But you can also get a different sense of mission and accomplishment by participating in it. Wang Guangyi took root in Xichang. If you want to do it, do it well; as long as you do it well, there will be a bigger platform. "Opportunities are always reserved for those who are prepared." He said.
In 2013, Wang Guangyi transferred to the Wenchang launch site in Hainan and started a long separation with his family in Xichang.
When the rocket is ignited, it shines; but other times, the launch tower is actually lonely. With the development of my country's aerospace industry, astronauts like Wang Guangyi have gained more exposure. He also once sighed that when there is a launch mission, the whole country is concerned; when there is no mission, "we use the sea as our company and the coconut grove as our friend."
Chasing dreams is lonely and great.
"I don't want to be famous, just to be worthy of myself, worthy of this career." Wang Guangyi said.