Tu Shou'e or Shou-ngo Tu (; 1917–2012) was a Chinese aerospace engineer who was a specialist in structural mechanics. Tu is famous as the chief designer of the Long March 2 rocket and China's intercontinental ballistic missile. Together with Liang Shoupan,

Huang Weilu Huang Weilu (; 18 December 1916 – 23 November 2011) was a Chinese aerospace and electrical engineer who was a specialist in the control systems of missiles and rockets. The chief designer of JL-1, China's first submarine-launched ballistic missi ...

and

Ren Xinmin Ren or REN may refer to: Abbreviations * Orenburg Tsentralny Airport, IATA code REN, civil airport in Russia * Redes Energéticas Nacionais (REN), Portuguese company * Renanthera, abbreviated as Ren, orchid genus * Ringer equivalence number ( ...

, Tu is considered one of the "Four Elders of China's Aerospace". He was granted the

Two Bombs, One Satellite Two Bombs, One Satellite () was an early nuclear and space project of the People's Republic of China. ''Two Bombs'' refers to the atomic bomb (and later the hydrogen bomb) and the intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), while ''One Satellite' ...

Merit Medal in 1999. Tu was elected a member of the

Chinese Academy of Sciences The Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS); ), known by Academia Sinica in English until the 1980s, is the national academy of the People's Republic of China for natural sciences. It has historical origins in the Academia Sinica during the Republi ...

in 1991.

Early life and education

Tu was born in Nanxun, Huzhou,

Zhejiang Zhejiang ( or , ; , Chinese postal romanization, also romanized as Chekiang) is an East China, eastern, coastal Provinces of China, province of the People's Republic of China. Its capital and largest city is Hangzhou, and other notable citie ...

in 1917. After completing his primary education in Zhejiang, he studied at

Shanghai High School Shanghai High School () is a top public high school in Shanghai, China. It also has an international division, the Shanghai High School International Division. In a 2016 ranking of Chinese high schools that send students to study in American unive ...

. The pervading sense of Japanese menace germinated an idea in his mind that China should have the independent capacity to manufacture planes. He was admitted to

Tsinghua University Tsinghua University (; abbr. THU) is a national public research university in Beijing, China. The university is funded by the Ministry of Education. The university is a member of the C9 League, Double First Class University Plan, Projec ...

in 1936 and entered its Aeronautical Engineering Department in 1938.

Career

After graduation, Tu worked at an aeronautical institute in Chengdu. He went to MIT in 1941 with full scholarship and received a master's degree there. Then Tu served Curtiss-Wright Corporation as a stress analyst, but he returned to China following the surrender of Japan in 1945, teaching at his alma mater as an associate professor and then as a professor. Tu reached Beijing after the university. Since the Adjustment of University Colleges & Departments in 1952, he was assigned to Beijing Aviation Institute. He had served successively as vice dean, dean and the assistant of president there. Later Tu was invited to serve the Fifth Academy of the Ministry of Defence in 1957. From then on, Tu plunged himself into Chinese missile and aerospace projects, especially its system design aspect. He was the deputy chief designer of Dongfeng 2 and Dongfeng 3, also the chief designer of Dongfeng 5 and Long March 2. He made several significant breakthroughs in the field. The vicissitudes of his life in the decade never rob his enthusiasm for search. He once completely absorbed in the formula during a struggle session, ignoring the impassioned speech. Tu felt very sorry for the ''Columbia'' disaster in 2003, but he also insisted that the progress of space science is unstoppable, while China "is still on track to launch its first manned spacecraft".

Personal

Tu joined in the CPC in 1948. Tu enjoyed

tai chi Tai chi (), short for Tai chi ch'üan ( zh, s=太极拳, t=太極拳, first=t, p=Tàijíquán, labels=no), sometimes called " shadowboxing", is an internal Chinese martial art practiced for defense training, health benefits and meditation. ...

and classic music. He and his wife, Qiu Su (), had five children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tu, Shou'e 1917 births 2012 deaths Chinese aerospace engineers Engineers from Zhejiang Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni Members of the Chinese Academy of Sciences National Southwestern Associated University alumni Scientists from Huzhou Space program of the People's Republic of China Tsinghua University alumni