The stars and planets have inspired awe and spurred thought since the dawn of history, and perhaps no nation has been focused on the skies for as long as China. The Kavli Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics (KIAA), at Peking University in Beijing, is both a tribute to China’s rich scientific tradition and an extension of it. Established in 2006 and becoming operational in 2007, KIAA is a global center of excellence in astronomy and astrophysics, attracting scientists from around the world (with English as its working language). It also aims to nurture fundamental research of the highest international standards within China.

Like KIAA, its founding director, Douglas Lin, is rooted in both East and West. He was born in New York and raised in Beijing, attended college in Canada and earned his doctorate in England, at the University of Cambridge. Since 1979 he has been a professor of Astronomy and Astrophysics at the University of California, Santa Cruz, and continues in his UCSC position. The Institute’s international advisory board is chaired by Frank Shu, Professor of Physics at the University of California, San Diego, and includes distinguished scientists from Peking University, the Institute for Advanced Studies in Princeton, the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy and Astrophysics in Munich, and the Purple Mountain Observatory in China.

Under Lin’s direction, the Institute is building a full-time faculty of 15, including three chaired professors hired from the top rank of the world’s scientists. Its research covers topics such as the nature of the early universe at the time of first light, the forces that led to the assembly of galaxies, and the physical laws that govern black holes, neutron stars and other high-energy phenomena.

KIAA is also a forum for global scientific exchange, an incubator of innovative projects and a training center for post-doctoral and student scientists from around the world. It is collaborating in these efforts with astrophysical centers worldwide, including other Kavli institutes.

Peking University (which retains the traditional English spelling of its name), is one of China’s oldest and most respected universities. A 2006 survey by the Times Higher Education Supplement named it the best university in Asia and the 14th best in the world. It is a key partner for KIAA, jointly supporting the Institute (along with the Kavli Foundation) and providing it with a new building on the university campus. KIAA also draws on the university’s rich intellectual environment and pool of top-ranked students.