In 1959, Chairman Mao famously declared: “Even if it takes ten thousand years, we must build our own nuclear submarine!”
In reality, China’s first nuclear submarine took only thirteen years from concept to launch.
When China embarked on the nuclear submarine project, it faced two daunting realities: no foreign technical assistance and zero domestic experience in submarine construction. Yet, against all odds, China’s nuclear submarine program moved faster than that of the United States or the Soviet Union in their early days—thanks in large part to one man: Peng Shilu, the first chief designer of China’s nuclear submarine, forever remembered as the “Father of China’s Nuclear Submarine.”
Peng Shilu was born on November 18, 1925, in Haifeng County, Guangdong Province. His parents, Peng Pai and Cai Suping, were devoted revolutionaries who gave their lives for China’s liberation. In 1928, his mother was executed in Haifeng under Kuomintang persecution; the following year, his father was betrayed, captured in Shanghai, and killed. At just four years old, Peng Shilu was an orphan.
But the people never forgot the kindness of Peng Pai, who had once burned land deeds and returned farmland to peasants. In Chaozhou, Guangdong, countless poor villagers risked their lives to protect Peng Shilu from political enemies, shielding the young boy from certain death.
In 1940, after years of displacement, Peng Shilu, along with other children of revolutionary martyrs, was sent to Yan’an under the care of Zhou Enlai. There, he received the Party’s nurturing and education.
In 1941, he entered the Yan’an Youth Cadre School, later studying at Yan’an Middle School, where he excelled in both academics and labor, earning the title of “Model Student.” By 1944, he was enrolled in the Chemical Engineering Department of Yan’an University’s School of Natural Sciences.
In 1945, due to his outstanding performance, he was admitted directly as a full member of the Chinese Communist Party without a probationary period.
Peng Shilu’s childhood had been marked by two imprisonments and years of hardship, yet the protection and support he received from the Party and the people instilled in him a deep, unwavering love for his country and its citizens. As he once said:“A turbulent childhood made me fearless in the face of hardship. Dozens of ‘mothers’ nurtured me with affection, giving me a natural love for the people. My parents sacrificed their property and even their lives for the peasants, and that gave me the resolve to devote everything to my country. Yan’an taught me self-reliance, hard work, and honesty. I may bear the surname ‘Peng,’ but in my heart, I belong to all Chinese families.”
In 1951, Peng Shilu earned the chance to study in the Soviet Union. At the Moscow Institute of Chemical Machinery, he graduated with top honors, earning the title of “Excellent Chemical Machinery Engineer.”
Just before graduation in 1956, he was summoned to the Chinese Embassy in Moscow by General Chen Geng, who asked:“The Central Committee has decided to select some top students to switch to nuclear power engineering. Would you be willing?”
Peng Shilu’s answer was instant and firm: “If my country needs me, I will do it.”
He transferred to the Moscow Power Engineering Institute to study nuclear power. Peng and his fellow Chinese students worked tirelessly, never going to bed before midnight. “We had too much to learn,” he recalled. “We were like travelers in a desert who had suddenly found a lake.”
In 1958, Peng Shilu returned to China and soon became part of the nation’s fledgling nuclear power program.
By 1965, when the nuclear submarine project was officially restarted, he was dispatched to a remote mountainous region in Sichuan. There, in an environment of complete technical isolation, he led his team through countless challenges, solving one critical problem after another.
In 1970, during the full-power land-based test of the nuclear propulsion system, a last-minute technical crisis threatened the entire project. Peng Shilu proposed a bold power increase strategy, and under his leadership, the team achieved a flawless success. His decisiveness earned him the nicknames “Peng the Bold” and “Peng the Decider.”
On December 26, 1970, China’s first nuclear-powered attack submarine was successfully launched—achieving Chairman Mao’s bold vow far ahead of “ten thousand years.” Peng Shilu credited the success to “the Party’s determination, collective wisdom, and the spirit of perseverance.”
In the 1980s, China decided to develop civilian nuclear power. In 1983, at the age of 58, Peng Shilu was appointed chief commander of the Daya Bay Nuclear Power Plant project in Guangdong. Despite shortages of funds, technology, and skilled personnel, Peng led his team to complete key preparatory work at remarkable speed.
In 1986, he was transferred to lead the construction of Qinshan Phase II Nuclear Power Plant, China’s first large-scale, domestically designed commercial nuclear power station. After years of grueling work, it was completed in 2004, standing as a milestone in China’s nuclear energy development.
Decades of high-intensity work took a severe toll on Peng Shilu’s health. At 49, he suffered an acute stomach perforation, losing three-quarters of his stomach, yet returned to work almost immediately. In his later years, with his health failing, he still thought of only three wishes:For China to have a stronger nuclear submarine fleet.For China to become a nuclear power leader.For the great rejuvenation of the Chinese nation and a happy life for its people.
Peng Shilu poured his life’s blood into China’s nuclear submarine and nuclear power programs, living by his own vow:“As long as my country needs me, I am willing to give everything.”
Today, he is remembered not only as the “Father of China’s Nuclear Submarine” but also as the trailblazer of China’s nuclear power industry, a man whose courage, wisdom, and patriotism lit the way for a nation’s technological rise.
