From the Great Bend of the Yarlung Zangbo River to Motuo, a distance of 260 kilometers with a drop in altitude of over 3,000 meters. This is the southeastern part of the Tibetan region located on the southern slope of the Himalayas. In 1974, Sun Honglie led a team to conduct a comprehensive survey here, enduring hardships and camping under the open sky for three days.
In 2015, at the age of 83, Sun Honglie, a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, revisited southeastern Tibet for inspection, specifically taking a ride along the now accessible Motuo Highway. Over 40 years, the world outside the window has changed, but his fascination with the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau remains unchanged.
In the 1970s, Chinese scientists conducted the first large-scale comprehensive scientific expedition to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, conducting a comprehensive survey of its natural environment and obtaining a large amount of first-hand data, filling in some of the blanks in research in certain areas and disciplines on the plateau.
Back then, Sun Honglie firmly believed that "the blank in scientific expeditions to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau must be filled by Chinese people." He led teams to embark on scientific expeditions, with their footsteps covering the entire Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. In his twilight years, he returned once again to the "homeland" of his soul, feeling the call of the snowy plateau, his gaze still determined and passionate.
"The blank in scientific expeditions to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau must be filled by Chinese people."
At 92 years old this year, Sun Honglie still vividly remembers his experiences of inspecting the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
In 1961, a young Sun Honglie was first sent by the Natural Resources Comprehensive Survey Committee of the Chinese Academy of Sciences to Tibet for inspection, thus forging a bond with the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
"What kind of soil does Tibet have?"
"The coarse one is called 'shaga' soil, and the fine one is called 'baga' soil."
This was the understanding of most people about Tibetan soil at that time. "Before the scientific expedition, there was almost no natural data available about the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau," Sun Honglie recalled in an interview with the Chinese Science Bulletin.
The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is the roof of the world. The uplift of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau has nurtured numerous rivers and formed a crucial ecological barrier for China. Before setting out on the expedition, Sun Honglie consulted all available materials and found that before the founding of the People's Republic of China, scholars from countries such as Britain, Sweden, Russia, and France had conducted inspections of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, while very few Chinese scholars had ventured into Tibet.
"I felt very heavy-hearted. The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is Chinese territory, yet there were very few Chinese scientists' work there," Sun Honglie said. At that time, he was determined to produce academic achievements by Chinese scientists themselves.
In 1972, following Premier Zhou Enlai's instructions, the "Chinese Academy of Sciences Qinghai-Tibet Plateau Comprehensive Scientific Expedition Team" was established, and scientific expeditions began in 1973. This was the first comprehensive and systematic scientific expedition to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in human history. "My goal was clear: there should be a comprehensive scan of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, followed by theoretical exploration based on this," Sun Honglie said.
The Qinghai-Tibet scientific expedition organized 35 professional teams, including experts and scholars in disciplines such as climate, soil, landforms, plants, and animals, with a team size of over 400 people. They combed through the geographical environment of Tibet "like combing hair."
"The Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is so captivating."
Although the equipment was rudimentary and the conditions extremely harsh during the first Qinghai-Tibet scientific expedition, Sun Honglie fell completely in love with this land.
In 1976, the last year of the Qinghai-Tibet scientific expedition, the expedition team was divided into four groups. Sun Honglie led a team to the highest-altitude region of Ali in Tibet.
Due to the large number of personnel, it was very difficult to obtain vehicles. The expedition team provided Sun Honglie with a jeep, but he resolutely refused any special treatment and used the vehicle to "pave the way" for the entire team's service. "Paving the way" mainly involved finding places to sleep, usually at transportation or military stations, where there were bunk beds that could accommodate more than 20 people, and everyone slept in their own sleeping bags.
The expedition team usually camped at places with an altitude of over 5,000 meters, and team members often suffered from headaches at night. The survey started early in the morning, and after waking up, team members would use sticks or stones to break holes in the ice and scoop out water for use.
When the expedition team had to climb to an altitude of over 6,000 meters, breakfast had to be simple, and they would use a compressed biscuit bought from the army as lunch.
"The compressed biscuit, the size of a mahjong tile, could only be nibbled a little at a time and swallowed with water. The hot water carried with us was limited and became cold when we reached the mountain. It took two or three times to finish such a biscuit," Sun Honglie said. Sometimes, when they passed by Tibetan tents, they would be warmly welcomed by Tibetans, eating tsampa and drinking butter tea.
Only in the evening could everyone have a "proper meal." Expedition team members took turns cooking, with each person cooking for a day to ensure everyone's energy. Everyone showed their culinary skills, with various flavors from north to south. Sometimes they could even improve a bit - making dumplings, picking some onions in the wild, and using canned meat as filling, which had a unique flavor.
"The conditions were indeed harsh, but everyone was full of enthusiasm because the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau is so captivating." In his recollections, Sun Honglie repeatedly mentioned "joy" and "attraction." On the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, Sun Honglie was not only passionate about his own field - soil geography but also had a strong desire for knowledge in other disciplines.
The soil team and the vegetation team conducted long-term surveys together. Sun Honglie spent a lot of time with botanist and Chinese Academy of Sciences academician Wu Zhengyi, learning from each other. Whenever they arrived at a place to investigate the soil, Sun Honglie would dig a pit to observe the soil profile vigorously, while Wu Zhengyi would record nearby plants. This was a good opportunity for Sun Honglie to learn the names of plants.
"Mr. Wu said that when learning plant names, you can't just say the Chinese names; you also need to remember the Latin names, which are universally used in the world." Sun Honglie said that it was the joy of learning and exchanging ideas that gave him the strength to study hard.
"The more difficult it is, the more I want to go."
From 1977 to 1979, the expedition team summarized their work over three years. Sun Honglie hoped Sun Honglie hopes to introduce this achievement to the world. In 1979, at the beginning of the reform and opening-up era, with efforts from all sides, the International Symposium on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau was held in Beijing, with many internationally renowned experts in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau research coming to China, with over 700 people attending the conference.
Sun Honglie said, "With the reform and opening-up, the scientific exploration achievements of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau were first introduced to the international community, setting an example for the Chinese Academy of Sciences." Later, Sun Honglie worked at the headquarters of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and could no longer conduct long-term field surveys, but he never stopped his research on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, going there whenever he had the chance.
"The more challenging it is, the more I want to go." To this day, the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau still tugs at Sun Honglie's heart. In 2017, the second scientific expedition to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau was launched. Yao Tandong, an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences and the leader of the second scientific expedition to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, took over the "baton" from Sun Honglie. "The first time was about filling in the gaps, while the second time requires deeper theoretical research." Sun Honglie hopes they can achieve more results.
Now, the second scientific expedition to the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau has yielded fruitful results, with many related international conferences being initiated and organized by Chinese scientists. Academic activities on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau can no longer bypass China. Sun Honglie is pleased to see the younger generation actively engaged in research on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, with the "leading role" becoming established.
Sun Honglie believes that the scientific spirit, dedication, and unity embodied by the older generation of researchers in Qinghai-Tibet Plateau studies will be carried forward, and more achievements will be made in the research of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
Sun Honglie (Part II) Records Field Survey on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau. Image provided by interviewee.
