Within the next few days China will launch a ‘quantum’ communications satellite heralding yet another major technology achievement for the world’s largest and most populous country, according to a report today in The Wall Street Journal. It’s part of China’s drive to build a hack-proof communications system.
This impressive show of science and technology strength follows China’s standing up of a 93-petaflops supercomputer in the spring (see HPCwire article, China Debuts 93-Petaflops ‘Sunway’ with Homegrown Processors) that now tops the Top500 list by a huge margin with a second even faster machine rumored to debut on the November 2016 list. Here’s a brief excerpt from the Wall Street Journal article:
“Beijing hasn’t disclosed how much money it has allocated to quantum research or to building the 1,400-pound satellite. But funding for basic research, which includes quantum physics, was $101 billion in 2015, up from $1.9 billion in 2005. U.S. federal funding for quantum research is about $200 million a year, according to a congressional report in July by a group of science, defense, intelligence and other officials. It said development of quantum science would “enhance U.S. national security,” but said fluctuations in funding had set back progress.”
“China’s investment in the field is likely being driven in part by fear of U.S. cyber capabilities, said John Costello, a fellow at Washington, D.C.-based New America specializing in China and cybersecurity, pointing to 2013 disclosures that the U.S. had penetrated deeply into Chinese networks. He also noted that U.S. institutions are researching how to build powerful quantum computers theoretically capable of shattering the math-based encryption now used world-wide for secure communication. “The Chinese government is aware that they are growing particularly susceptible to electronic espionage,” Mr. Costello said.”
As noted in the article, scientists in the U.S., Europe, Japan and elsewhere are rushing to exploit the strange and potentially powerful properties of subatomic particles, but few with as much state support as those in China, researchers say. Quantum technology is a top strategic focus in the country’s five-year economic development plan, released in March.
To read the full article (China’s Latest Leap Forward Isn’t Just Great—It’s Quantum, written by Josh Chin): http://www.wsj.com/articles/chinas-latest-leap-forward-isnt-just-greatits-quantum-1471269555