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2026 Vol. 56, No. 2

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Editorial Note
2026, 56(2): 289-290. doi: 10.6052/1000-0992-26-027
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Abstract:
Review
Microgravity science: The new horizon for knowledge expansion and transformative technologies
HE Guowei, ZHOU Jianping, ZHANG Weihong, GU Yidong, ZHANG Panfeng, CHEN Meng, KANG Qi, LONG Mian, TIAN Qiang, ZHANG Lu, BA Jin, ZHU Jihong, WANG Lizhen, LYU Shouqin, LI Zhaobin
2026, 56(2): 291-336. doi: 10.6052/1000-0992-25-043
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Microgravity science is one of the cornerstones of space science and applications. It represents an emerging focal point in the global science and technology arena and stands as a significant hallmark of national competitiveness in space technology. With the completion of China’s space station and the impending retirement of the International Space Station, China’s space station—serving as a national space laboratory—will solicit and carry out over a thousand scientific research projects during its operational lifetime, providing a unique experimental platform and offering unprecedented opportunities for the development of microgravity science in China. Based on the 385th “Shuangqing Forum” of the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC), this paper summarizes the challenges and difficulties faced by China’s microgravity science and technology research. It reviews the major progress and achievements made in recent years in fields of microgravity fluid physics, microgravity manufacturing and space technology, and microgravity life sciences and biomedical engineering technology. Furthermore, the article identifies the critical scientific issues facing the field of microgravity science and technology in the coming 5 to 10 years, and discusses frontier research directions and suggestions for the development of the discipline.
Theory and technology of high-temperature gas dynamics research and applications
JIANG Zonglin
2026, 56(2): 337-392. doi: 10.6052/1000-0992-25-023
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Abstract:
The high-temperature gas dynamics was originated from significant changes of macroscopic laws of the gas flows due to physical property changes of the gas mediums when its temperature become extremely high, which goes beyond basic assumptions and research scopes of the gas dynamics. The high-temperature gas dynamics was developed as the core technology for the next generation of aerospace industries is ceaselessly explored when human activities greatly are expanding into the space. This discipline is one of the best models of the engineering science and leads to the development and innovation of the gas dynamics which is pushed forward by the mechanism of application-driven-research. Four dominant research areas of the high-temperature gas dynamics are selected in this paper to conduct a general review with discussions, hoping to help more or less the development of high-temperature gas dynamics. The first area is about hypersonic ground test facilities and measurement technologies. Three typical high-enthalpy shock tunnels were introduced and have been applied to generate the flow velocity of 1.5 ~ 10 km·s−1 at flight altitudes of 20 ~ 100 km. The advanced test facilities are very important for the frontier expansion of disciplines and the discovery of new phenomena in fluid flow physics. The progress in the research area also highlights this truth. The second area is about theories and experiments of hypersonic gas flows, which include their physical and mathematical models, computational methods and results of experimental observations and measurements. Among them, the development of gas physical models is much slower than expected since it is still limited to applications and improvements of the early-developed physical models. The computational method has been developed rapidly, so there are more and more flow phenomena that can be simulated. The progress on the experimental research also is promising due to some large test-model experiments that reproduced model-scaled effects of the hypersonic flow experiments, from which the high-temperature gas physics phenomena revealed is well consistent with hypersonic flight tests. The third one is about supersonic combustion and scramjet engines. This is a research field that has been hot for several decades, during which theoretical and technical researches had achieved a great progress and flight tests have also yielded fruitful results. However, the development of scramjet engines still cannot meet engineering needs and the scramjet engine theory still has difficulties to explain the problems encountered. Therefore, the research of the supersonic combustion and the scramjet engines urgently needs theoretical innovation and technological breakthroughs. The last is about detonation physics and oblique detonation engines. The oblique detonation engine was both almost in the same time with the scramjet engine together, and its research has received a renewed attention only from the beginning of this century. There have been innovative breakthroughs in detonation theory and oblique detonation research since then. And also, a great progress has been made in the standing oblique detonation engine and the hypersonic shock tunnel technology. The oblique detonation engine accepts the unique pressure-gain combustion phenomenon in nature, having the fastest combustion speed, the highest thermal efficiency for its thermal cycle and low heat loads so that it would have a great advantage over others. Finally, the theories, technologies and experiments are summarized about the four research areas of the high-temperature gas dynamics, with which it is expected to provide this discipline with some useful enlightenments.
Strongly coupled laser thermal-mechanical damage effects
WANG Ruixing, YUAN Wu, MA Te, QIU Cheng, DU Wenqi, ZHANG Tianyi, WANG Gaojie, SONG Hongwei, HUANG Chenguang
2026, 56(2): 393-459. doi: 10.6052/1000-0992-25-042
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With rapid advancement of high-energy laser technology, application scenarios of laser-induced damage effects are expanding to higher-speed engineering structures. The coupling effects among high-energy lasers, high-speed airflow environments, and materials or structures become significantly stronger, thereby markedly influencing thermal and mechanical damage behaviors of lasers and even inducing novel damage mechanisms and failure phenomena. Furthermore, issues such as thermo-mechanical coupling resulting from laser irradiation and the thermo-mechanical-impact-ablation coupling under combined loading of different laser systems further complicate the coupling behaviors of damage effects. Research on strongly coupled laser-induced thermo-mechanical damage effects addresses the latest developmental needs in related fields, involving interdisciplinary integration of optics, heat transfer, materials science, solid mechanics, and fluid mechanics. It constitutes a fundamental scientific challenge common to high-tech domains such as laser weapon effect evaluation, advanced laser manufacturing, and spacecraft protection. This paper systematically reviews recent research progress by domestic and international scholars in this field. It summarizes findings from several key aspects: Novel phenomena and mechanisms of laser-induced thermo-mechanical damage under strong coupling conditions, multi-scale thermo-mechanical ablation mechanisms and models of laser-irradiated composite materials, similarity criteria for laser-induced thermo-mechanical damage under complex loads and environments, multi-field coupled numerical simulation methods, ground simulation testing techniques and in-situ multi-field measurement technologies, laser protection and reinforcement strategies, and laser-based intelligent sensing and damage assessment. Finally, based on current trends, future research directions in this field are prospected. This paper aims to provide theoretical foundations and technical references for both mechanistic studies and engineering applications of strongly coupled laser-induced thermo-mechanical damage effects.
Wide-speed-range hypersonic vehicle aerodynamic configuration: Research progress and future challenges
CUI Kai, CHANG Siyuan, XIAO Yao, LI Guangli, TIAN Zhongwei
2026, 56(2): 460-516. doi: 10.6052/1000-0992-26-009
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Wide-speed-range hypersonic vehicles, characterized by their capabilities for horizontal takeoff and landing, reusability, and flight across vast airspace, are expected to serve as the core platforms for future space round-trip and rapid long-distance delivery missions. The aerodynamic configuration design of these vehicles directly determines their overall performance and technical feasibility, while also confronting multiple fundamental theoretical and engineering challenges, such as multi-physics field coupling and adaptation to a wide speed range. This paper systematically reviews the research progress on aerodynamic configurations in this field, both domestically and internationally. Firstly, it reviews the evolutionary trajectory of typical foreign development projects and conceptual schemes, highlighting that aerodynamic configuration design has shifted from optimizing performance for a single speed regime to a comprehensive trade-off across the entire flight envelope. Subsequently, the current research status of fixed configurations is summarized from four aspects: waveriders, high-pressure capturing wings, bidirectional flying wings, and optimization design for wide-speed-range aerodynamic configurations. Furthermore, the development of morphing technologies is reviewed, and the primary morphing strategies applicable to wide-speed-range hypersonic flight are synthesized. Finally, an in-depth analysis of the core challenges currently facing the design of wide-speed-range hypersonic aerodynamic configurations is conducted at the levels of aerodynamic design, multidisciplinary coupling design, and application. Corresponding future development suggestions are proposed, aiming to provide a reference for research and engineering practice in related fields.
Translation
A few frontier issues in ocean engineering mechanics
LI Jiachun, NIE Bingchuan
2026, 56(2): 517-534. doi: 10.6052/1000-0992-25-044
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In this review, we primarily address the present state of the arts and latest progresses in a few frontier issues mostly relevant to free surface/interface in ocean engineering. They include TC (tropical cyclone) induced extreme surface wave, sloshing of LNG (liquefied natural gas), cavitation/bubble dynamics and VIM (vortex-induced motion) and VIV (vortex-induced vibration). In addition to general description, we mainly focus on the recent advances and challenging aspects of above-mentioned topics. Inspired by the achievements in the previous 70 years, mankind starts a new round of ocean exploration activities. Then, we can find obvious trends: The realm of ocean engineering is expanding from sea surface to deep sea, from low and middle latitude to polar region and from fossil to renewable energy in near future.

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