China News Service, Beijing, March 9th (Guo Chaokai and Yang Xin) A reporter learned from the China Satellite Navigation System Management Office that at 19:55 Beijing time on March 9, China successfully launched a Long March No. 3B carrier rocket at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center. The 54th navigation satellite of the Beidou system. The satellite smoothly enters the planned orbit, and subsequent orbital changes, on-orbit tests, test evaluations, and timely access to the network will be provided to provide services.
At 19:55 on March 9, Beijing time, China successfully launched the 54th navigation satellite of the Beidou system at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center using the Long March IIIB launch vehicle. Photo by Guo Wenbin
The construction of the Beidou system has gone through three phases of the Beidou No.1, No.2 and No.3 systems. At present, all four Beidou-1 test satellites have been retired. Starting from the first star of the Beidou No.2, China has launched 54 Beidou navigation satellites. Only one step away from the completion of the Beidou III system.
The Beidou-3 system consists of 24 medium-circle earth orbits, 3 geostationary orbits, and 3 oblique geosynchronous orbits. A total of 30 satellites are launched. This launch is the 29th network satellite and the second geostationary Orbiting satellites, which play a key role in satellite-based enhancements, short message communications, and precise single-point positioning. In May this year, China will launch its last geostationary orbit satellite as planned. By then, the deployment of Beidou III Global Constellation will be fully completed.
At 19:55 on March 9, Beijing time, China successfully launched the 54th navigation satellite of the Beidou system at the Xichang Satellite Launch Center using the Long March IIIB launch vehicle. Photo by Guo Wenbin
The satellite launch mission, from the satellite entry on January 9 to the launch on March 9, was carried out during the entire new crown pneumonia epidemic prevention and control. The rocket was shipped from the factory in early February. According to the original transportation route, it needed to pass through the worst-affected Hubei area, and then it was rerouted. The arrival time was two days later than planned. The dozens of members of the rocket and satellite test team had left the station a year ago. Normal vacation, can not return to continue to carry out the mission; the launch site faces a huge risk of epidemic prevention and control of multiple batches and regions. The major systems of the project quickly started the emergency work plan. On the basis of strictly implementing various epidemic prevention measures, the optimization of the process and the inversion of the construction period, the adoption of measures such as collectively closed charter flights to the launch site, and remote and front-end remote video technology for quality control were implemented. There were two foolproof ones in the prevention and control of the epidemic situation and two in a comprehensive victory.
The Beidou navigation satellite and supporting launch vehicle launched this time were respectively developed by the China Academy of Space Technology and the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. This is the 327th flight of the Long March system launch vehicle.