The ZDF-24 half-circle waiting rotary camera, making outstanding achievements in the first atomic bomb explosion test in China, is the ground breaking work of Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences to enter the world field of vision, and the cornerstone of the development of ultra-high speed rotary camera. As you know, 80% of the rotating mirror ultra-high speed cameras in China are originated from Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, which is the hometown of developing the rotating mirror ultra-high speed cameras in China. The rotating mirror ultra-high speed imaging technology has the advantages of large picture, large number of pictures, high spatial resolution, wide spectral band, wide frequency and convenient operation, so rotating mirror cameras have been the mainstay of mega-frame per second imaging for decades. There is still no electronic camera that can match a film based rotary mirror camera for the combination of frame count, speed, resolution and dynamic range. This paper discusses the research progress of the topology of its information theory, an exploration of rotary mirror dynamics, the modern design theory of rotary camera and the waiting type simultaneous framing and streak imaging system, so called “the pearl in the crown”. It is expected to explain why China can become a powerful country in rotary mirror ultra-high speed photography.