From Mars to the moon: the computer system behind China’s space missions

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From Mars to the moon: the computer system behind China’s space missions

• Chinese researchers developed the Kylin operating system to replace the Western products the country relied on
• Sending it into space meant combining security, reliability and performance, engineers say

The Kylin system helps run China’s space programme. Photo: Xinhua




“Using other people’s systems, to quote President Xi [Jinping], is like building a house on other people’s land. It can be large and beautiful, but it can also be destroyed overnight,” he said in an interview on state television on Sunday.

The Kylin OS system is used in China’s space programme. Photo: CCTV


When its first version was released in 2006, the system came under a lot of criticism for its poor user experience and its lack of compatible software.

But Kylin worked well with domestically developed computer chips such as the Loongson CPU.
As the Chinese government began replacing Intel chips and Windows systems in the military, government, banks and other sensitive sectors, the Kylin user base grew rapidly.

A look at the computer system behind China’s space missions

Chinese researchers developed the Kylin operating system to replace the Western products the country relied on.

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From 2008, China’s space authorities started to replace Western software and hardware in satellites and spacecraft. The process sped up after Edward Snowden’s revelations in 2013 about US hacking activities.
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[Whizzack]

Interesting! so China actually already have a solid WIndows-like OS all this time... Any chance it will be released to the general public as well, or is it exclusively for use by the gov / military / critical sectors / etc...?

 

[Saifullah]

Interesting! so China actually already have a solid WIndows-like OS all this time... Any chance it will be released to the general public as well, or is it exclusively for use by the gov / military / critical sectors / etc...?

West doesn't want that to happen and that's why all sorts of sanctions are being put on Chinese companies and China in general.