The Deep Space Exploration Laboratory, Nanjing University, is a research and development laboratory established to contribute to space exploration development of China and to integrate and give full play to the university’s multidisciplinary strengths in solar physics, lunar and planetary science, space environment science, celestial mechanics and astrometry, astronomical navigation and control technology, electronic science, remote sensing science and computer science. The laboratory serves the national deep space exploration work with research in science targets, science payload design and development, spacecraft flight program design, data collection, and later research. 

The laboratory’s R&D team includes two academicians of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, six young leading academic figures, and a group of professors, associate professors and engineers. It also includes a group of adjunct professors (allowed to guide graduate students) such as Zhu Renzhang, Gu Xingfa, Wang Hongfang, Zhou Jianhua, Liu Jie, Wang Jiasong, and Xu Bo. 

At present, the laboratory focuses on the mission design for the Mars exploration, Mars geological science, autonomous navigation of satellites and constellations, design and load development for remote sensing satellites, lunar exploration and spacecraft rendezvous technology.

The Deep Space Exploration Laboratory undertakes tasks of the Mars exploration pre-research Pision and the planetary geology and space environment Pision of the Space Exploration Center of the Ministry of Education of China. It integrates the strengths on the space science research from relevant schools of Nanjing University, especially from the research platform of the School of Space Science of Nanjing University, including its satellite data processing application system under construction, Earth Observation Technology Center, and Center for Small Satellite Design and Simulation. In addition, the university’s High-Performance Computing Center has computer cluster systems whose capacity is superior among China’s universities. The School of Earth Sciences and Engineering’s National Key Laboratory has several pieces of high-precision equipment for geological sample analysis and testing such as electron microscopes, X-ray diffractometers, and hyperspectral resolvers. The School of Geographic and Oceanographic Sciences and the Earth System Science Institute have high-performance indoor/field spectrometers from ultraviolet to infrared and are introducing aerial/ground imaging spectrometers. In addition, Nanjing University has been in long-term cooperation with No.14 Research Institute of China Electronics Technology Group Corporation.
　　Young Academic Leaders
　　Professors Tian Qingjiu, Ding Mingde, Xie Zhidong, Xu Bo, Yan Feng, and Zhou Jilin Academic Committee:
　　Principals: Academicians Sun Yisui and Fang Cheng
　　Executive Deputy Director: Professor Zhu Renzhang
　　Laboratory:
　　Director: Professor Zhou Jilin
　　Deputy Directors: Professors Ding Mingde and Xu Bo
　　• Contact: Wang Ping
　　Tel: 025-83686215 13770577115 
　　Fax: 025 83595972
　　Email: pingw1@163.com 
　　Mailing address: Department of Astronomy, Nanjing University 210093