BeiDou constellation reaches fruition to fuel Chinese global ambitions

25th June 2020 - 01:30 GMT | by Gordon Arthur in Christchurch

RSS

China launched its final BeiDou (Compass) satellite from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre on the morning of 23 June. This completes the country’s global coverage for its dual-use navigation and timing system.

The satellite was lofted into geostationary orbit by a Long March 3B rocket. The original launch scheduled for 16 June had been delayed because of technical difficulties.

China rolled out BeiDou, a counterpart to the American GPS network, in three phases, with 55 satellites launched to date. The first BDS-1 phase possessed just two geosynchronous satellites (plus spares) and provided a limited active location service within China

Already have an account? Log in

Want to keep reading this article?

Read this Article

Get access to this article with a Free Basic Account

Original curated content, daily across air, land and naval domains
2 free stories per week
Daily news round-up email service
Access to all Decisive Edge email newsletters

Create account

Unlimited Access

Access to all our premium news as a Premium News 365 Member. Corporate subscriptions available.

Original curated content, daily across air, land and naval domains
14-day free trial (cancel at any time)
Unlimited access to all published premium news

Start your free trial

Author

Gordon Arthur

Gordon Arthur was the Asia Pacific editor for Shephard Media. Born in Scotland and educated …

Read full bio

More from Modernised Situational Awareness Special Report

What is MOJO? (sponsored video)

Viasat’s Move Out/Jump Off terminal allows operational commanders at the tactical edge to receive the best possible levels of situational awareness required to do their job.
What is an STT? Small Tactical Terminal (sponsored video)

The KOR-24A STT extends the ability of warfighters to conduct real-time communications and increase interoperability in austere environments.
What is BATS-D? (sponsored video)

BATS-D provides dismounted personnel with a ground-to-air capability to shorten the targeting cycles and accuracy of close air support and other fire missions.
What is MIDS? (sponsored video)

Viasat’s Government Systems division provides U.S. and coalition military forces with a range of advanced communications technology. Here’s a quick description of one of them: MIDS
What is Link 16? (sponsored video)

Viasat’s Government Systems division provides U.S. and coalition military forces with a range of advanced communications technology. Here’s a quick description of one of them, Link 16:
US augments EW defence with network modernisation

The US Army is working to modernise its tactical networks to enable expeditionary and mobile operations, and bolster its resilience against near-peer EW and cyber …