Progress and Prospects of the Strategic Priority Program on Space Science

In May 2018, the second phase of the Strategic Priority Program on Space Science (SPP II) was officially approved by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, in view of the significant scientific achievements of the first phase of the Strategic Priority Program on Space Science (SPP I) which includes 4 space science missions:the Dark Matter Particle Explorer (DAMPE), ShiJian-10 (SJ-10), Quantum Experiments at Space Scale (QUESS) and Hard X-ray Modulation Telescope (HXMT). Aiming to address fundamental scientific questions, SPP II focuses on two major themes:How the universe and life originate and evolve and What is the relationship between the solar system and human beings. In areas that Chinese scientists have advantages, new space science missions including Graviational wave high-energy Electromagnetic Counterpart All-sky Monitor (GECAM), the Advanced space-based Solar Observatory (ASO-S), the Einstein Probe (EP), and Solar wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer (SMILE) have been approved in the framework of SPP II. This paper presents the research highlights of the SPP I, introduces the recent progress of SPP II, and puts forward the prospects for future development.