“巔峰使命”珠峰科考于2022年4月28日全面啟動，第二次青藏科考隊聯合西藏登山隊，組織了西風-季風協同作用、亞洲水塔變化、生態系統與生物多樣性、人類活動變化、地球動力學勘測等5支科考分隊的16個科考小組共270余名科考隊員參與了此次活動。“巔峰使命”珠峰科考首次應用先進技術、方法和手段，創造了多項科學考察研究的世界紀錄：在海拔8830米成功架設了世界上海拔最高的自動氣象站，首次建成了梯度聯網的巔峰站，實現了數據實時傳輸，成為地球之巔科學燈塔；首次利用高精度雷達測量了珠峰頂部的冰雪厚度并獲得連續冰雪厚度剖面準確數據；首次取得海拔梯度間隔100米樣品支撐的珠峰頂部冰雪樣品；采用國內自主研發的先進儀器首次獲得珠峰地區地面到上空39公里的臭氧濃度及溫度、濕度、風速與風向的垂直變化；首次利用直升機觀測拉薩-珠峰地區大氣溫室氣體濃度；創造了浮空艇環境觀測的9032米最高海拔世界紀錄。“巔峰使命”珠峰科考是自2017年第二次青藏科考啟動以來學科覆蓋面最廣、參加科考隊員最多、采用的儀器設備最先進的綜合性科考，是人類在珠峰地區開展極高海拔綜合科學考察研究的一次壯舉。
Chinese scientists break aerostat altitude record
The Jimu 1 aerostat is prepared for takeoff on Sunday in the Tibet autonomous region. SUN FEI/XINHUA
Chinese scientists launched the latest model of the Jimu 1 aerostat, a giant helium-filled tethered airship, on Sunday to collect weather data at a world-record altitude of 9,032 meters on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
It was the first time an aerostat of its size had reached this height, surpassing even the summit of the 8,849-meter-tall Mount Qomolangma, known as Mount Everest in the West.
Yao Tandong, the director of the Institute of Tibetan Plateau Research at the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said the feat represented an integration of frontier sciences with technological innovation, and would allow scientists to directly collect atmospheric data above an altitude of 9 kilometers on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau for the first time.
"These findings will contribute to the global effort in addressing climate change," he said.
The surface of the aircraft is made of advanced composite fabric that is lightweight, resistant to radiation and can withstand temperatures as low as -70 C. It has a volume of 9,060 cubic meters and weighs 2.6 metric tons, according to the institute.
The aerostat can carry numerous scientific instruments that enable scientists to collect atmospheric data and study the moisture transport process at extreme altitude. It can also track changes in black carbon, dust, methane, ozone, carbon dioxide and other substances in the air.
Researchers hope these data can yield important insights on how westerlies－winds that blow from west to east in the middle latitudes between 30 and 60 degrees－affect the environment on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
The Jimu 1 Model III is the latest and biggest of the three airships developed by Chinese scientists to collect atmospheric data and study the effects of climate change on the plateau. The first model was launched in 2019 and reached a height of 7,003 meters.
Source:https://enapp.chinadaily.com.cn/a/202205/16/AP6281a49fa3104446d8d18619.html