Spacewatch: China launches last BeiDou satellite to rival GPS

Third iteration hoisted into space offers alternative to US, EU and Russian navigation systems

China launched the final satellite of its BeiDou navigation satellite system (BDS) from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan province at 9.43am local time (0243 BST) on 23 June 2020.

Developed by the China Academy of Space Technology, the satellite is the 30th in the constellation, and was carried into space by a Long March 3B rocket.

This is the third iteration of the BDS system and consists of 24 medium Earth orbit satellites, three inclined geostationary satellites and three geostationary satellites.

The service began in 2000 with the launch of two satellites for BeiDou-1. A third satellite was launched in 2003, completing the flotilla.

BeiDou-2 became operational in 2011 with 10 satellites, with another four added to the constellation by the end of 2012. BeiDou-3 carries rubidium and hydrogen atomic clocks to provide upgraded navigation services.

The satellites also allow users to send messages of up to 1,200 Chinese characters and are designed to last for at least 12 years.

BDS is one of four global navigation satellite systems in use. The others are the US’s GPS, the EU’s Galileo, and Russia’s Glonass.

Contributor

Stuart Clark

The GuardianTramp

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