Chinese scientists have since cooperated with Japanese and Italian scientists to conduct observations in Yangbajing.

This year, the China-Japan collaboration discovered the highest-energy cosmic gamma rays ever observed, opening a new window on the extreme universe.

"Without national development, we would not have the funds to develop the technology," said Huang Jing, a researcher at IHEP and a spokesperson for the project.

World-leading observatory

When Cao Zhen was working in Yangbajing, he began to draw up a plan for a new-generation cosmic ray observation base. He aimed to make it a world-leading observatory.

He and his team spent five years investigating potential sites in Tibet, Qinghai, Yunnan and Sichuan.

Daocheng was eventually chosen due to its high altitude, convenient transport, stable power supply, sufficient water resources and support from the local government.

Infrastructure construction started in July 2016, and the building of the observatory officially began in June 2018.

The main objective of LHAASO is to search for the origin of cosmic rays, and study their acceleration and transmission mechanisms, said Cao.

In the second huge pool of LHAASO, which is 5 meters below ground, water Cherenkov detectors have been installed to form an array, and they will be submerged in 100,000 tonnes of the purest water in the world.

"The water comes from nearby lakes and rivers and has gone through strict purification. Only transparent pure water can make the detectors catch the signals generated by high-energy particles clearly," said Chen Mingjun, deputy director of the Cherenkov detector array.

After being on the plateau for a year, Chen lost more than 15 kg due to the hard work, but he said he is lucky to participate in such a grand project.

Foreign peers have been amazed at the speed of LHASSO's construction. It's not only a result of the scientists' efforts, but also of the complete industrial production capacity of China. It's the embodiment of China's overall national strength, said Cao.

He said the LHASSO project has drawn world attention. Scientists from Russia, Switzerland, Poland, the Czech Republic and other countries hope to bring their scientific equipment to the observatory.

Research teams from Australia and Thailand and other countries will participate in the project directly. Some well-known international research teams expressed the desire to conduct cooperation and joint observation with LHASSO, said Cao.

"After completing the LHASSO project, China is expected to lead the world in the field of cosmic ray research," Cao said. 

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