IMCP as Pioneer: China-Brazil Research Team Expands Frontiers in Understanding Ionospheric Responses to Extreme Space Weather Events
Recently, a China-Brazil research team composed of the National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences and the Brazilian National Institute for Space Research utilized data from the Belém station at the Brazilian equatorial site to observe, for the first time internationally, the anomalous appearance of aurora-type Es layers in equatorial regions during the magnetic storm recovery phase. The study confirmed that superstorms can drive high-energy particle precipitation to break through latitude constraints, deepening human understanding of solar storm impacts on low-latitude ionospheric physical processes. In this study, the China-Brazil Joint Laboratory for Space Weather/South American Space Weather Laboratory of the Chinese Academy of Sciences fully leveraged the International Meridian Circle Program (IMCP)’s role as a pioneering demonstration station, providing a research platform at the forefront of equatorial observations. Through technical exchanges and collaboration, the research promoted the cross-border dissemination and upgrading of ionospheric observation technologies and numerical simulation methods, providing replicable and scalable experience for global space weather research cooperation. The research has been published in Space Weather.
Source: National Space Science Center, Chinese Academy of Sciences
Institute of Chemistry Achieves Important Progress in High-Performance Organic Thermoelectric Materials Research
Recently, a collaborative team led by ZHU Daoben/DI Chong’an from the Organic Solids Laboratory and ZHANG Deqing from the Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences developed a novel flexible thermoelectric film with a highly porous structure that achieves record-breaking thermoelectric performance in this material category, providing key material support for future technologies such as self-powered wearable devices and patch-style cooling. By developing a critical regulation method for polymer phase separation, the film exhibits a “porous disordered-narrow channel ordered” structural characteristic that significantly suppresses thermal conductivity, reducing it by 72%, while simultaneously enhancing electrical conductivity by 52%, successfully achieving decoupling and synergistic enhancement of electrical-thermal transport. This research breaks through the traditional limitation that charge transport and phonon scattering in polymer thermoelectric materials are difficult to optimize synergistically, providing a new development path for the field of flexible thermoelectric materials. This research received technical support from the Huairou Research Center of the Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences. The findings have been published in Science.
Source: Institute of Chemistry, Chinese Academy of Sciences
CASAcme, Institute of Physics and Collaborators Jointly Develop Liquid-Helium-Free Optically-Coupled SPM System for Ångström-Scale Multimodal Characterization
Recently, the R&D team at CASAcme, in collaboration with Researcher HUAN Qing’s team from the Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences and Professor TAN Shiliang’s team from the University of Science and Technology of China, successfully integrated their independently developed and commercially applied “remote liquefaction” cooling solution into optically-coupled scanning probe microscopy (OC-SPM), creating a new closed-cycle liquid-helium-free optically-coupled scanning probe microscope system. The system features a base temperature below 4K and temperature stability of +1mK, with noise levels below 1pm. The optically-coupled multimodal scanning probe integrates two three-dimensional piezoelectric nano-motor-driven lens modules, achieving Ångström-scale imaging of near-field spectra. Series testing results demonstrate that the system can operate continuously for extended periods with multiple technical specifications surpassing traditional wet OC-SPM systems. The research has been published in Advanced Scientific Instruments.
Source: CASAcme
Stem Cell Institute Develops Novel Targeted Protein Degradation Technology SPYTAC, Providing New Strategy for Alzheimer’s Disease Treatment
Recently, a joint team led by Researcher LI Wei, Researcher HU Baoyang, and Researcher ZHOU Qi from the Beijing Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine/Institute of Zoology, Chinese Academy of Sciences developed a novel targeted protein degradation technology capable of efficiently crossing the blood-brain barrier. This technology achieves synergistic clearance of Aβ protein in both peripheral and brain tissues, and has demonstrated significant therapeutic effects and superior safety in Alzheimer’s disease mouse models. The study breaks through the bottlenecks of existing protein degradation therapies regarding blood-brain barrier permeability and immune safety, not only bringing new candidate strategies for Alzheimer’s disease treatment but also opening new pathways for precisely targeting central nervous system diseases and other diseases driven by extracellular pathogenic proteins. The research has been published in Cell.
Source: Beijing Institute for Stem Cell and Regenerative Medicine
Peking University Proposes New Scheme for Nuclear Clock Key Material Preparation, Solving Thorium-229 Supply Bottleneck for Nuclear Optical Clocks
Recently, Professor YAN Xueqing’s team from the School of Physics at Peking University innovatively proposed a scheme based on photonuclear reactions for preparing thorium-229 doped crystals—core materials for next-generation solid-state nuclear clocks. This research provides an innovative theoretical framework and systematic simulation basis for nuclear clock R&D. Under the guidance of this theoretical research, the team, in collaboration with the Shanghai Institute of Optics and Fine Mechanics, Tsinghua University, and other partners, conducted crystal irradiation and performance characterization experiments, achieving phased progress. Currently, the team is promoting the establishment of a Thorium-229 Collaboration Group, working with domestic and international institutions to advance the empirical validation and optimization of this technical pathway, committed to transforming this concept into reality and contributing to China’s strategic initiative in future ultra-precision measurement and national time standard international competition. The research has been published in Advanced Science.
Source: School of Physics, Peking University
UCAS and Collaborators First Confirm Binary Origin of Type II-P Supernovae
Recently, an international research team led by Associate Professor SUN Ningchen from the School of Astronomy and Space Science at the University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS) and the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences achieved a major breakthrough, providing strong observational evidence for the binary origin of Type II-P supernovae for the first time. During the research, the team successfully captured the progenitor star of Type II-P supernova SN2018gj, which was anomalously located in an exceptionally old environment at the edge of its host galaxy, with the supernova’s light curve exhibiting an unusually short “plateau” phase. To solve this puzzle, the team innovatively integrated key methods including direct progenitor star detection, environmental stellar population analysis, and hydrodynamic simulations of the explosion process, successfully confirming that these observational characteristics point to the binary origin of this supernova. The research has been published in Science Bulletin.
Source: University of Chinese Academy of Sciences (UCAS)
Institute of Atmospheric Physics Reveals Impacts of Tibetan Plateau Surface Sensible Heat Heating on Cloud Cover and Surface Radiation Budget in Surrounding Asian Regions
Recently, Dr. LI Jiandong from the State Key Laboratory of Earth System Numerical Modeling and Application at the Institute of Atmospheric Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with multiple institutions, conducted carefully designed climate model experiments to study the impacts of Tibetan Plateau surface sensible heat on cloud cover and surface radiation budget in surrounding Asian regions, providing new insights into the climatic effects of Tibetan Plateau surface heating from the perspective of clouds and energy budget, and expanding research on the plateau’s climate effects. This research received technical support from the Earth System Science Numerical Simulator Facility (EarthLab). The findings have been published in Journal of Geophysical Research: Atmospheres.
Source: Earth System Science Numerical Simulator Facility (EarthLab)