The three-row cylindrical roller slewing bearing with an outer diameter of 4.6 meters from LYC has passed the acceptance check

On January 5th, the first domestically produced 4.6-meter outer diameter, high radial load capacity three-row cylindrical roller slewing bearing for the world's largest 120-meter aperture fully steerable radio telescope rolled off the production line at the group company and successfully passed expert acceptance. This marks another breakthrough for my country in the field of bearings for ultra-large telescopes, setting new records for both radial load capacity and precision in bearings for fully steerable telescopes.

This is also another significant achievement for the group company in this field, following the successful acceptance of the bearing for the 110-meter QTT radio telescope on July 17, 2025.

This bearing is an azimuth bearing developed for the world's largest 120-meter aperture fully steerable radio telescope, led by the National Astronomical Observatories of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. It achieves an overall precision of P4 level and employs a high radial load capacity three-row cylindrical roller slewing bearing structure, providing radial positioning auxiliary support for the azimuth mechanism and meeting the telescope's requirement for stable ±360-degree rotation. As a crucial component of the project's core components, the precision of this bearing directly determines the telescope's pointing accuracy. To meet the high pointing accuracy requirements of the telescope, the bearing employs a preloaded radial design, achieving a radial load capacity of 42,000 kN, the highest among turntable bearings of its class. During development, the group company's R&D team, addressing its specific requirements, successively overcame key technologies such as the high radial load capacity design of extra-large turntable bearings, high hardness of extra-wide radial raceway surfaces, and deep-layer quenching. They innovatively proposed installation and maintenance methods adapted to the bearing structure, successfully solving a series of technical challenges for the 120-meter antenna bearing. The product passed acceptance testing on the first attempt, filling a gap in the development of azimuth bearings for extra-large, high-load-bearing telescopes in China.

The 120-meter Aperture Omnidirectional Moving Radio Telescope (120-meter Aperture Omnidirectional Moving Radio Telescope) is another major project in the national astronomical field. Upon completion, it will become the world's largest omnidirectional moving radio telescope, and is expected to be fully completed in 2028. At that time, the telescope will form a complementary strategic layout with the Guizhou FAST (500-meter Aperture Spherical Radio Telescope) and Xinjiang Qitai 110-meter Radio Telescope, which were previously matched by the group company. This will promote the construction of a "multi-polar support" scientific research pattern in the field of radio astronomy in my country and significantly enhance my country's voice and influence in the global astronomical community.