Tag: China
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China’s First Open Shared TT&C Platform for Commercial Space Begins Operations in Beijing
China’s first open shared platform for commercial space tracking, telemetry and command (TT&C) services officially began operations Aug. 19 in Beijing, supporting the full measurement and control process for the launch of a Honghu-03 satellite and the recovery of a reusable rocket booster. The Beijing Rocket Street Commercial Space Intelligent TT&C Center, located in Beijing…
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China Marks 666th Long March Flight with Six Remote-Sensing Satellites
China launched six remote-sensing satellites aboard a Long March 4B rocket Sept. 10, marking the 666th flight of the Long March family and adding new spacecraft for scientific experiments, land-resource surveys, agricultural monitoring and disaster reduction. The Long March 4B ignited at 5 p.m. Beijing time at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center and deployed Yaogan-53…
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From Precision Landings to Rapid Turnaround: Key Technologies Behind Reusable Rocket Engines
With the successful recoveries of the Long March 10B and Zhuque-3, rocket recovery and reuse have become one of the hottest topics in the space industry. Yet the real value lies not in the dramatic moment of recovery, but in the underlying economics: reducing the cost per launch by reusing high-value components. As the most…
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China’s New Communications Plan Elevates Satellite Networks in the 6G Roadmap
China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has called for deeper integration between satellite networks and terrestrial communications systems, including satellite-to-phone connectivity, satellite Internet of Things services and the coordinated development of an integrated space network. The requirements are part of China’s Information and Communications Industry Development Plan for the 15th Five-Year Plan period, issued…
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Why Was the Rocket Unscathed After Being Struck by Lightning?
On July 24, China successfully launched the Tianlian II-06 satellite aboard a Long March-3B carrier rocket from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center. During its ascent, lightning flashed near the rocket, creating a spectacular scene. A rocket had barely lifted off when it was suddenly struck by lightning, sending electrical arcs scattering across its body in…
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China Advances Tianwen-3 Mars Sample-Return Mission Toward 2028 Launch
China has moved hardware for its Tianwen-3 Mars sample-return mission into prototype development, maintaining plans for two Long March 5 launches in late 2028 and the return of approximately 500 grams of Martian material to Earth around 2031. If successful, the mission would complete the first direct return of samples from Mars and could give…
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Seven Chinese Private Companies Building the Optical Backbone for Satellite Networks
China’s commercial space sector is moving satellite laser communications from isolated technology demonstrations toward multi-satellite networking and batch production. Recent milestones include a 400Gbps intersatellite transmission, 11 optical links connecting a 12-satellite space-computing cluster, and a bidirectional gigabit-class laser link between the ground and a geostationary satellite more than 40,000 kilometers away. Laser communications can…
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Behind a Funding Round of More Than RMB 500 Million: How Far Has China’s Space Laser Communications Industry Come?
HiStarlink recently announced the completion of a Series A2 funding round worth more than RMB 500 million, bringing its total financing this year to over RMB 700 million. Since the beginning of 2026, the laser communications sector has recorded at least one financing event every month except May. HiStarlink, Laser Link, Laser Starcom and other…
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China Launches Authorized Operation of National BeiDou Reference Station Data Network
China has launched authorized commercial operation of service data from its national satellite navigation and positioning reference station network. This marks the first national-level authorization of public-data operations in the field of spatial and temporal information infrastructure. It will help transform the reference station network’s underutilized public data from a public resource into data assets…
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What Imaging Capabilities Does Commercial Earth Observation Need in the AI Era?
In the era of AI in space, customers are not simply purchasing an image. What they truly need is timely, comprehensive information about where an event is occurring, how quickly it is changing, and how far its effects extend. As commercial Earth observation evolves from data products toward decision-support services, pricing is no longer determined…