This dissertation studies how radio astronomy began in new China under its special scientific, social and political backgrounds. As a new field of astronomy, radio astronomy was developed in new China at the end of the 1950s. Its birth is closely related to the needs and planning of scientific development of the country in its early days, but is also the result of the 1958 Sino-Russian joint observation on the annular solar eclipse in Hainan Island. Its early development was also influenced by the 'Great Leap Forward'. Specifically, this study focuses on the four aspects of social backgrounds of new China: the first science planning set in 1956, the 'task-oriented science development' strategy, the international background of Sino-Soviet cooperation in science and technology, and the political campaign of “Great Leap Forward”. New China's first scientific development planning and the “task-oriented science development” strategy offer the blueprint and put forward the specific ways for the development of science during the period. Radio astronomy was one of the programs of planning for astronomy. The strategy of 'task-oriented science development' is a balance between national economic with scientific development, such as technology used in the task of time service started in 1955 was related to that of radio astronomy, and some of the builders of radio astronomy also took part in the same task before they were called in to start this new discipline. Sino-Soviet cooperation in science and technology is one of the effective science development strategies in the mid-twentieth century of new China, which provides convenience for the scientific development of the new China. The 1958 Sino-Russian joint observation was one of such cases through which Chinese scientists learned radio astronomy technology from the Soviet and then China established the first team on radio astronomy under the help and guidance of the Soviet union.The Campaign of 'Great Leap Forward' began in 1958. The birth and the early steps of radio astronomy also experienced the “baptism” of the 'Great Leap Forward', which interrupted the normal way of the development of this new scientific discipline.