台灣囝仔嚴正 化身「好奇號」大腦登陸火星

2012年美國太空總署NASA執行「好奇號」（Curiosity）探測車登陸火星的任務，引起世界矚目，而在任務團隊中有一個台灣人的身影，他是來自台灣的嚴正。嚴正不只達成進入美國太空總署NASA的夢想，他更扛起設計「好奇號」執行軟體的責任，並在登陸火星後，負責操控「好奇號」，堪稱是「好奇號」的大腦。

由於「好奇號」的任務受到全世界矚目，任何發現都可能影響未來火星探測任務，作為「好奇號」的副總工程師，嚴正一刻也不敢鬆懈，這次則趁著NASA世界巡迴展來到台灣，特地回國與大家分享太空探險的經驗。

清大數學系畢業的嚴正，赴美求學後轉換跑道至機械與電腦科學，並投入行走車輛的研發與設計。原本參與太空任務並不在嚴正的人生規劃中，直到1997年看到美國推動的火星探路者計畫，將機器火星車旅居者號送上火星，這對嚴正而言是很大的衝擊，他才發現原來自己的研究領域居然跟太空任務有關。

因為有研發行走車輛的技術，加上朋友的引薦，嚴正繞了一大圈，終於進入了許多人夢寐以求的NASA。

在投入「好奇號」的任務前，2004年時嚴正先參與了「機會號」與「精神號」兩部機器火星車的任務，回想當時，嚴正表示每天晚上都睡不好，常會夢見任務失敗而被驚醒，不過所幸夢境都沒有成真，而原定只能執行90天探測任務的精神號，今年已迎來在火星的第12年。

有了前面的經驗，嚴正在2005年開始投入「好奇號」的軟體開發任務，並在7年後順利將「好奇號」送上火星。嚴正說明，這項任務前後長達7年，所有的工作人員壓力都很大，若是失敗就代表所有同事過去7年的努力完全白費。

因此，當「好奇號」順利登陸，並傳回畫面後，所有人都欣喜若狂，嚴正回憶當時的心情表示，除了開心外，一想到接著要擔負起「好奇號」的操控工作，更是興奮不已。

「好奇號」執行任務至今已經4年，除了曾從火星寄回明信片外，也證實火星的土壤中富含水分，對於未來人類移民火星有不小助益。

至於火星任務的下一步，嚴正表示「好奇號」在火星上的任務還有6年，預計在2020年時會啟動下一個階段的火星計畫，屆時會將新的機器火星車送往火星，採集火星上的岩石、土壤等自然物質，並在適當的時候將它從火星接回地球，透過分析採集物，有助於人類對於火星的認識，並為往後的探測任務提供有利的資訊。

從數學研究跨界到太空任務，嚴正說，不要害怕夢想太大，找對方向才是重要，他認為台灣相較與美國而言，相關的航太資源與科系較少，因此許多對於航太有興趣的學生都不敢去逐夢，他建議，知道自己真正喜歡什麼，並全心投入，當機會來臨的時候才能把他牢牢抓住。

過去都是透過「好奇號」的眼睛看火星，會不會想實際到火星看看，嚴正笑說，上太空實在太辛苦也太冷了，還是交給機器人就好。

 

感謝取材自<https://news.ltn.com.tw/news/life/breakingnews/1709459>

 

 

In 2012, NASA carried out the mission of the "Curiosity" rover to land on Mars, which attracted the attention of the world, and there was a Taiwanese figure in the mission team, he was Yan Zheng from Taiwan. Yan Zheng not only achieved his dream of entering NASA, he also took up the responsibility of designing the "Curiosity" execution software, and after landing on Mars, he was responsible for controlling the "Curiosity", which can be called the brain of the "Curiosity".

 

As the mission of "Curiosity" has attracted worldwide attention, any discovery may affect future Mars exploration missions. As the deputy chief engineer of "Curiosity", Yan Zheng did not dare to relax for a moment. This time, he came to Taiwan taking advantage of the NASA World Tour. , Specially returned to China to share with you the experience of space exploration.

 

Yan Zheng, who graduated from the Department of Mathematics at National Tsing Hua University, changed the track to mechanical and computer science after studying in the United States, and devoted himself to the development and design of walking vehicles. Originally participating in space missions was not in a rigorous life plan. Until 1997, he saw the Mars Pathfinder project promoted by the United States and sent the robotic Mars Rover Sojourner to Mars. This was a big impact for Yan Zheng. It turns out that my research field is actually related to space missions.

 

Because of the technology of developing walking vehicles and the recommendation of friends, I made a serious circle and finally entered the NASA that many people dream of.

 

Before entering the "Curiosity" mission, in 2004, Yan Zheng first participated in the mission of the two robotic rover "Opportunity" and "Spirit". Looking back at that time, Yan Zheng said that he could not sleep well every night and would often dream of mission failures. I was awakened, but fortunately the dreams did not come true, and the Spirit, which was originally scheduled to only perform a 90-day exploration mission, has ushered in its 12th year on Mars this year.

 

With the previous experience, Yan Zheng started the software development mission of "Curiosity" in 2005, and successfully sent the "Curiosity" to Mars 7 years later. Strictly speaking, this task lasted for 7 years, and all the staff were under great pressure. If it fails, it means that all colleagues' efforts in the past 7 years have been completely in vain.

 

Therefore, when the "Curiosity" landed smoothly and returned to the screen, everyone was ecstatic. Yan Zheng recalled the mood at the time and said that in addition to being happy, the thought of the next task of controlling the "Curiosity" was even more so. Excited.

 

It has been 4 years since Curiosity has performed its mission. In addition to sending postcards back from Mars, it has also confirmed that the soil of Mars is rich in water, which will be of great help to future human migration to Mars.

 

As for the next step of the Mars mission, solemnly stated that the "Curiosity" mission on Mars is still 6 years away. It is expected that the next stage of the Mars program will be launched in 2020, when the new robotic rover will be sent to Mars. Collecting natural materials such as rocks and soil on Mars and bringing them back to Earth from Mars at an appropriate time. Through analysis of the collected objects, it will help humans understand Mars and provide beneficial information for future exploration missions.

 

From mathematics research to cross-border missions to space missions, seriously, don’t be afraid that your dreams are too big. It’s important to find the right direction. He believes that Taiwan has fewer aerospace resources and disciplines than the United States, so many are more important to aerospace. Students who are too interested dare not chase their dreams. He suggests that you know what you really like and devote yourself to it. Only when the opportunity comes can you hold him firmly.

 

In the past, I used to see Mars through the eyes of Curiosity. Wouldn't you want to actually see Mars? Yan Zheng smiled and said that going to space is too hard and too cold, so it's better to leave it to the robot.