School of Mathematics, Physics and Statistics; Jing Zhou

On the morning of August 26, the winners of the 2024 Shanghai Science and Technology Awards were announced. The project "Symplectic Algorithms and Dynamics of Compact Objects," led by Professor Wu Xin from our college, achieved a historic breakthrough by winning the Second Prize of the Shanghai Natural Science Award.  

In the past decade, the successful detection of gravitational waves and the release of black hole shadow images have sparked a surge of interest in black hole physics. Solving the problem of constructing symplectic algorithms for black hole spacetimes is of utmost importance and has been included in the *Chinese Astronomy Development Strategy 2035*. This project has resolved long-standing international challenges, demonstrating significant innovation and possessing profound implications and applications. It has been recognized as one of the landmark achievements in geometric numerical integration in China over the past 40 years. The algorithms developed in this project can be applied not only to planetary and satellite dynamics but also to black hole physics research, such as gravitational lensing, chaos, and the relationship between shadows and jets. Furthermore, it promotes interdisciplinary integration and development in fields such as computational mathematics, celestial mechanics, astrophysics, and general relativity.