Program overview
Astrometry and celestial mechanics might sound a bit highbrow, but it's really the study of looking up at the stars and wondering, "Where exactly is that star, how does it move, and why does it move that way?" Simply put, astrometry focuses on precisely measuring the positions, distances, and motions of celestial bodies, while celestial mechanics uses physical laws (mainly Newtonian gravity) to explain and predict their orbits. Core courses include spherical astronomy, fundamentals of astrometry, celestial mechanics, satellite orbit mechanics, and time-frequency systems. You'll learn to use telescopes, radar, laser ranging, and other equipment to collect data, and you'll also write code to simulate orbits. This major is perfect for students who love math and physics and are curious about aerospace, navigation, and deep-space exploration. China has strong capabilities in this field—for example, the Astronomy Department of Nanjing University, the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, and the Shanghai Astronomical Observatory all have world-class observation facilities and research teams. Moreover, the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System, the Chang'e lunar exploration program, and the Tianwen-1 Mars exploration all rely on knowledge from this field.