A Long March 3B carrier rocket was launched from Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Southwest China's Sichuan Province on May 17, sending the 56th BeiDou navigation satellite into space.
A Long March 3B carrier rocket, carrying the 56th BeiDou navigation satellite, is launched from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Southwest China's Sichuan Province on May 17. [Photo/sasac.gov.cn]
Developed by the China Academy of Space Technology, a subsidiary of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), the satellite will operate in the geostationary orbit and is the first backup satellite of China's BeiDou-3 Navigation Satellite System (BDS-3).
After it enters into the selected orbit and completes in-orbit testing, the satellite will be connected to the BeiDou satellite navigation system.
It is expected to enhance service of the system and promote its large-scale application.
As the satellite realizes the in-orbit hot backup of other BDS-3 geostationary orbit satellites in operation, it will play a role in enhancing the availability and stability of the system and increasing its regional short message communication capacity by one-third, improving satellite-based augmentation and the precision of the single-point positioning service.
The Long March 3B carrier rocket used in the launch was developed by CASC's China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology.
The launch on May 17 is the 473rd mission of the Long March series.
(Executive editor: Xie Yunxiao)
