China Outer Space Science, Technology and Explorations: News & Updates

[JSCh]

Chinese commercial space startup develops AI satellites
Source: Xinhua| 2018-11-25 21:52:16|Editor: Yurou


CHENGDU, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- Having sent two satellites into space within 100 days after its establishment, a young Chinese commercial space firm is preparing for a new launch in December.

Supported by the local government, the Chengdu GuoXing Aerospace Technology Co. Ltd. was set up in the capital of southwest China's Sichuan Province in May. It has developed two experimental satellites integrated with AI technology.

"The AI technology could give the satellite a stronger capability of automatic data analysis," said Zhao Hongjie, vice president of the startup firm.

For instance, the remote sensing satellite with AI technology could autonomously identify clouds and fog, and select the useful images to send back to earth, thus greatly improving its working efficiency, Zhao said.

One such kind of AI satellite developed by the company for commercial use was sent into the sun-synchronous orbit on Oct. 29.

The company, employing more than 40 staff, most of whom are under 30, is only one example of China's emerging commercial space industry.

Companies like SpaceX, Blue Origin and Virgin Galactic are developing cost-effective carrier vehicles with the aim to make space travel possible for ordinary people. They have also inspired Chinese entrepreneurs.

Launching rockets and satellites has long been the goal of China's state-owned aerospace companies, but private space firms are now popping up hoping to make a name for themselves in this burgeoning industry.

According to a report by Beijing-based investment institution FutureAerospace, more than 60 private Chinese firms have entered the commercial space industry over the past three years, focusing on the production and launch of satellites and rockets.

This follows a government policy issued in 2015 to encourage private enterprises in space industry.

Analysts say commercial space activity could help lower costs and increase the efficiency of space activities, and accelerate technology development.

The value of the global space market is estimated to reach 485 billion U.S. dollars in 2020 when the value of China's space market is projected to be 800 billion yuan (125.78 billion dollars). About two-thirds of global satellite orders will come from commercial customers in the next decade.

Lured by the promising market, Chinese space companies recently unveiled a series of programs to produce and launch small and micro satellites.

 

[JSCh]

LinkSure Network Launched Satellite Network Program — Realising Global Free Internet Access by 2026

GABRIEL LI
NOVEMBER 27, 2018

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On November 27, LinkSure Network officially launched its satellite network program — “LinkSure Swarm Constellation System.” The company’s first satellite “LinkSure No.1” will be launched into space together with the Long March rocket in 2019.

The “LinkSure Swarm Constellation System” is developed independently by LinkSure Network’s satellite team, aiming to solve internet access in areas uncovered by terrestrial networks. The ultimate goal is to provide free satellite network around the globe by 2026.

An Yang, the chief scientist of the LinkSure network satellite team (Source: LinkSure Network)

“The whole planet can be separated into two parts, the part with internet coverage and the part without. Our goal is to connect everyone, whether it’s in the mountains, ocean or deserts,” said An Yang, the chief scientist of the LinkSure Network satellite team.

The system has two layers of satellites, which consist of 72 core satellites 1000 km above the ground and 200 node satellites that are 600 km away from the ground. Yang also mentions that each satellite houses a robot that automatically copes with malfunctions and ensures a healthy operating status.

In 2014, the State Council officially announced Document No. 60, explicitly encouraging the investment of private capital in national civil space infrastructure. The company set up its official satellite team in 2016. The first satellite will be launched at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center (JSLC) in 2019. The first set of ten satellites will be launched in 2020.

(Source: LinkSure Network)

Internet satellites have become a hot topic in European and American tech firms in recent years. Similar space projects from companies such as OneWeb, Telesat and SpaceX, led by Elon Musk, have all received permission from Federal Communications Commission (FCC). According to Washington Post, SpaceX has just been authorized to build a network that blankets the earth in wireless Internet access.

LinkSure Network has been focusing on bridging the digital inequalities to provide free internet access worldwide. According to the latest statistics from the China Internet Network Information Center, or CNNIC, there are still 588 million people in China with no access to the internet as of June 2018.

According to the 2017 App Annie’s list, the top four apps with the most monthly active users are are from Facebook, Tencent, Alibaba and LinkSure Network . According to the App Top500 list of the first quarter of 2018 released by Cheetah Mobile Big data, WiFi Master Key ranked amongst the top three together with WeChat and QQ in terms of penetration rate. As of August 2018, LinkSure Network reached 900 million monthly active users.

In terms of public welfare, the company’s “Dream Key” charity project has also brought internet access to 241 schools in remote mountain areas, which has benefited over 270,000 children.

Featured photo credit to LinkSure Network

 

[JSCh]

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[JSCh]

林晓弈
19分钟前 来自 航爱网牌Android
西昌用于发射嫦娥四号月球探测器的火箭已经上架，它将于北京时间2018.12.08 01:30–03:30发射升空。航天爱好者网O网页链接

The rocket used in Xichang Launch Center to launch the Lunar 4 lunar probe has been erected on the launch pad. It will be launched at 2018.12.08 01:30–03:30 Beijing time.

 

[JSCh]

Fengyun satellites handed over to meteorological authority
By Jiang Chenglong | chinadaily.com.cn | Updated: 2018-11-30 20:15

Fengyun-3D blasts off from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in Shanxi province, Nov 15, 2017. [Photo/Xinhua]

Two Fengyun satellites were officially turned over to China's top meteorological authority on Friday, which will help weather forecasting and the prevention of natural disasters for countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative.

The two meteorological satellites are Fengyun-2H and Fengyun-3D, which were launched on June 5 this year and Nov 15, 2017, respectively.

After on-orbit tests that showed they work well, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp officially handed the two satellites to their user, China Meteorological Administration.

Wei Caiying, chief commander of the ground application system of Fengyun-2H and deputy director of the National Satellite Meteorological Center, said the Fengyun series satellites will be able to cover all the territory of China, as well as countries involved in the Belt and Road Initiative, the Indian Ocean and most African countries.

Fengyun-2H, a geostationary orbit satellite, is the last in the Fengyun-2 series.

The other satellite, Fengyun-3D, is one of China's second generation of Polar-Orbiting Meteorological Satellites, which can provide global three-dimensional all-weather and multi-spectral remote sensing images.

The Fengyun-3D satellite will form a network with the Fengyun 3C satellite, which was launched into space in September 2013. Together they will improve the accuracy of atmospheric sounding and enhance the monitoring of greenhouse gases. The network will help China's disaster relief work.

 

[kuge]

The rocket used in Xichang Launch Center to launch the Lunar 4 lunar probe has been erected on the launch pad. It will be launched at 2018.12.08 01:30–03:30 Beijing time.

is the time confirmed ?
any live coverage?

 

[JSCh]

is the time confirmed ?
any live coverage?

Not straight from the horse's mouth, but from all the other information, you can consider it confirm.

According to big shrimp from weibo, there will not be live coverage of the launch, probably because it is at midnight.

After launch, it will probably be a while before landing. Judging from the CE-3 mission history, CE-4 would need to perform lunar transfer, lunar capture, lunar orbiting to take picture of landing site, communication test with the Queqiao relay satellite, and then landing. Landing would likely happen during lunar dawn so there would be a specific deadline every month.

 

[kuge]

Not straight from the horse's mouth, but from all the other information, you can consider it confirm.

According to big shrimp from weibo, there will not be live coverage of the launch, probably because it is at midnight.

After launch, it will probably be a while before landing. Judging from the CE-3 mission history, CE-4 would need to perform lunar transfer, lunar capture, lunar orbiting to take picture of landing site, communication test with the Queqiao relay satellite, and then landing. Landing would likely happen during lunar dawn so there would be a specific deadline every month.

hope onboard video camera will be live ...how many days will it take before landing on the far side?

 

[JSCh]

hope onboard video camera will be live ...how many days will it take before landing on the far side?

I think and hope that the landing would be broadcast live. I think it is not possible to say how many days before landing, because it will depend on how the stages in the mission go, weeks at least, likely next year.

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NEWS | 30 NOVEMBER 2018
China set to launch first-ever spacecraft to the far side of the Moon
Chang’e-4 mission will test plant growth on the Moon, and listen for radio emissions normally blocked by Earth's atmosphere.

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Rendering of the Moon lander for Chinas Chang'e-4 lunar probe on the lunar surface.Credit: Xinhua/ZUMA

Early in the New Year, if all goes well, the Chinese spacecraft Chang’e-4 will arrive where no craft has been before: the far side of the Moon. The mission is scheduled to launch from Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in Sichuan province on 8 December. The craft, comprising a lander and a rover, will then enter the Moon’s orbit, before touching down on the surface.

If the landing is successful, the mission’s main job will be to investigate this side of the lunar surface, which is peppered with many small craters. The lander will also conduct the first radio astronomy experiments from the far side of the Moon — and the first investigations to see whether plants will grow in the low-gravity lunar environment.

“This mission is definitely a significant and important accomplishment in lunar exploration,” says Carolyn van der Bogert, a planetary geologist at Westfälische Wilhelms University in Münster, Germany.

The ultimate goal of the China National Space Administration (CNSA) is to create a Moon base for future human exploration there, although it has not announced when that might happen. Chang’e-4 will be the country’s second craft to ‘soft’ land on the lunar surface, following Chang’e-3’s touchdown in 2013.

Landing site
The CNSA has remained tight-lipped about many of the mission’s details, including the landing site. The most likely location is inside a 186-kilometre-wide crater called Von Kármán, says Zongcheng Ling, who studies the formation and evolution of planetary bodies at Shandong University in Weihai and is a member of the mission’s science team. “We scientists are very happy” to have the chance to visit the far side, says Ling.

The crater is part of the South Pole–Aitken basin, the largest known impact structure in the Solar System and the oldest on the Moon.

View of the Moon showing South Pole–Aitken basin (labelled).Credit: NASA/GSFC/Arizona State Univ.

“It is a key area to answer several important questions about the early history of the Moon, including its internal structure and thermal evolution,” says Bo Wu, a geoinformatician at Hong Kong Polytechnic University, who helped describe the topography and geomorphology of this site.

The Chang’e-4 rover will map the region surrounding the landing site. It will also measure the thickness and shape of the subsurface layers using ground-penetrating radar, and measure the mineral composition at the surface with a near and infrared spectrometer, which could help geologists to understand the processes involved in the Moon’s early evolution.

Because the far side of the Moon never faces Earth, CNSA mission control won’t be able to communicate directly with the craft once it has landed. In May, China launched a communications satellite called Queqiao to beyond the Moon where it can act as a relay station for communications between the lander and Earth.

Rendering of the Moon rover for Chinas Chang’e-4 lunar probe on the lunar surface.Credit: Xinhua/ZUMA

Greenhouse studies
Although the Chang’e-4 rover and lander were designed as backups for Chang’e-3, and carry several instruments similar to the earlier mission, the lander will also carry some unique experiments.

One of those will test whether potato and thale-cress (Arabidopsis) seeds sprout and photosynthesize in a sealed, climate-controlled environment in the low gravity on the lunar surface.

“When we take the step towards long-term human habitation on the Moon or Mars, we will need greenhouse facilities to support us, and will need to live in something like a biosphere,” says Anna-Lisa Paul, a horticultural scientist at the University of Florida in Gainesville.

The proposed Chinese experiments will seek to verify previous studies on the International Space Station, says John Kiss, a space biologist at the University of North Carolina Greensboro. These found that potato and thale-cress can grow normally in controlled ecosystems in lower gravity than on Earth, but not in gravity as low as on the Moon.

Radio astronomy
The lander’s radio astronomy experiments will explore parts of the Milky Way that are poorly understood, such as the gases between stars, and the magnetic fields that propagate after a stars’ death.

A radio spectrometer, built by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, will collect electromagnetic data between 0.1 and 40 megahertz to create a map of low frequency radiation from the night sky. Capturing these measurements from Earth is difficult because low frequency radiation is mostly blocked by Earth’s atmosphere, says Heino Falcke, a radio astronomer at Radboud University Nijmegen in the Netherlands, and a member of the Dutch team that has built a low-frequency radio spectrometer carried on the Queqiao satellite. “We have completely blurred vision at low frequencies,” he says.

Astronomers will use this data to better understand how energy released by dying stars heats up the gases between them, which could affect how stars form, says Flacke.

He also plans to combine data from the Moon experiment with those from Queqiao. Astronomers are also interested in this spectrum of radiation to study the first few hundred million years of the Universe, a time before the formation of galaxies and stars. The data could help them filter out background noise that could be hiding a signal from this time period. If found, that signal could reveal information about the distribution of ordinary matter compared with dark matter in the Universe. But even with the help of the moon lander, it is not certain that they will detect the signal, says Falcke. “It is a first step.”

China’s next venture to the Moon will be even more ambitious. Chang’e-5, scheduled to launch in 2019, will endeavour to bring samples from the Moon back to Earth.

doi: 10.1038/d41586-018-07562-z


China set to launch first-ever spacecraft to the far side of the Moon | Nature

 

[JSCh]

NOTAM for Chang'e 4 is out.

A5217/18 (Issued for ZSHA ZGZU) - A TEMPORARY RESTRICTED AREA ESTABLISHED BOUNDED
BY:N260808E1142921-N261444E1140013-N255857E1135553-N255223E1142456

BACK TO START.ALL ACFT ARE FORBIDDEN TO FLY
INTO THE TEMPORARY RESTRICTED AREA, ACFT SHALL AVOID THE TEMPORARY

RESTRICTED AREA BY ATC. GND - UNL, 07 DEC 18:15 2018 UNTIL 07 DEC 18:36 2018.
CREATED: 05 DEC 05:31 2018


A5215/18 - A TEMPORARY RESTRICTED AREA ESTABLISHED BOUNDED
BY:N272159E1083650-N273125E1074313-N271528E1073946-N270603E1083315
BACK TO START.ALL ACFT ARE FORBIDDEN TO FLY
INTO THE TEMPORARY RESTRICTED AREA, ACFT SHALL AVOID THE TEMPORARY

RESTRICTED AREA BY ATC. GND - UNL, 07 DEC 18:14 2018 UNTIL 07 DEC 18:34 2018.
CREATED: 05 DEC 05:27 2018​

 

[JSCh]

October 29, 2018
FRANCE-CHINA SPACE COOPERATION - CFOSAT IN ORBIT

Monday 29 October, the China France Oceanography Satellite (CFOSat) was placed into orbit by a Chinese Long March 2C launch vehicle from the Jiuquan launch base in Inner Mongolia. CFOSat’s solar array deployed successfully 32 minutes later and the satellite started its science mission to study ocean surface winds and waves.

The CFOSat mission has been designed to gain new insights into ocean surface characteristics and their impacts on the atmosphere-ocean exchanges that play a key role in the climate system. The satellite is carrying two radar instruments: SWIM (Surface Waves Investigation and Monitoring), developed by France, which will survey the length, height and direction of waves; and SCAT (wind SCATterometer), developed by China, which will measure the strength and direction of winds. Simultaneous acquisition of wind and wave measurements by the two instruments constitutes a scientific first.

France and China developed the satellite together. During the data exploitation phase, the China National Space Administration (CNSA) will be in charge of satellite command-control from its Xi’an control centre. Working closely with this operational team, CNES will task and monitor the SWIM instrument from its Toulouse Space Centre. CNSA will likewise task and monitor the SCAT instrument from its mission centre in Beijing. Each country will acquire all SCAT and SWIM science data via two French receiving stations in Canada and Sweden and three stations in China. Each partner nation will thus assure redundancy of science telemetry reception and processing.

After the announcement of the launch’s success, CNES President Jean-Yves Le Gall commented from the Jiuquan launch base: “In 1997, CNES and CNSA signed the first cooperation agreement between France and the People’s Republic of China on the study and peaceful uses of outer space. It was in 2014 that we decided to go ahead with the CFOSat ocean-surveying mission, a major project confirming our nations’ commitment to tackling climate change and the culmination of a unique partnership in this domain. CNES and CNSA have constantly combined their efforts in this area ever since. We signed a memorandum of understanding in January this year, in the presence of Presidents Emmanuel Macron and Xi Jinping, to step up this cooperation and encourage wide uptake of CFOSat data. These data will be instrumental in the success of the Space Climate Observatory (SCO), one of the flagship measures in the Paris Declaration adopted by the world’s space agencies at the One Planet Summit in December 2017.”


presse.cnes.fr | France-China space cooperation - CFOSat in orbit

China-France satellite gets first ocean data
By Liu Caiyu Source:Global Times Published: 2018/12/6 15:48:40

The China-France Oceanography Satellite (CFOSat) had obtained more than 400 pieces of marine environmental data in its first batch of data transmissions, a month after it took off from China's Gobi Desert.

The data includes the distribution and moves of cyclones, location and intensity of typhoons, which helps researchers forecast the weather more accurately, Science and Technology Daily reported on Thursday, quoting the Ministry of Natural Resources.

Liu Jianqiang, the project's chief scientist, who is also the deputy director of Ocean Satellite Center of China's Ministry of Natural Resources, told the Global Times on Thursday that the satellite is still in the test phase but is expected to operate after three months.

Marine data received by the satellite will benefit the accuracy of weather forecasts for China and France and boost international cooperation in this field, Liu noted.

The satellite had obtained data of Typhoon Man-yi, including its features, location, movement and speed.

The satellite started transmitting data via the microwave scatterometer and spectrometer since November 2 and 3, the report said.

The satellite, atop a Long March-2C carrier rocket, took off on October 29 from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China's Gobi Desert and entered a sun-synchronous orbit 520 kilometers above Earth, Xinhua News Agency said.

Developed by the China National Space Administration (CNSA) and the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES), France's space agency, the satellite can conduct 24-hour observations of global wave spectrums, effective wave height and ocean surface wind fields.

With the two innovative radar instruments - the scatterometer was developed by China to measure the strength and direction of wind and a wave spectrometer developed by France to survey the length, height and direction of waves - the satellite can help scientists collect data about wind and waves at the same location for the first time.

China previously launched six oceanic satellites, with the first officially approved for development in 1997. Two other satellites, the HY-1C and the HY-2B, were also sent into space this year ahead of the CFOSat, Xinhua reported.

 

[JSCh]

Dutch research team involved in first landing on the far side of the moon
Date of news: 5 December 2018

The Chinese space agency will be launching the Chang’e 4 moon lander on Friday 7 December, hoping to make China the first country to land on the far side of the moon. Dutch astronomers are also looking forward to the launch as they are collaborating with Chinese scientists on this mission. A satellite containing a Dutch radio instrument has already been launched to the far side of the moon, ready to be switched on once the moon lander touches down.

How is the Chang'e4 satellite doing?
China’s Chang’e 4 relay satellite was launched on 21 May this year, following the launch of the moon lander. The satellite is now in place behind the moon to provide communication between the moon lander and the earth, and is equipped with a radio instrument made in the Netherlands.

Image: Launch of the Chang’e 4 relay-satelliet QueQuiao on 21 May 2018 from China. Credit: Albert-Jan Boonstra (ASTRON).

First Dutch team involved in a moon landing
The Netherlands-China Low-Frequency Explorer (NCLE) was developed by a team from Radboud University, the Netherlands Institute for Radio Astronomy (ASTRON) and the company ISIS. The instrument is expected to start making scientific observations early next year. The whole Dutch team is keenly anticipating the launch on 7 December, not only because it will be the first ever landing on the far side of the moon, but especially because scientists from the Radboud Radio Lab in Nijmegen and ASTRON are also part of the Chang'e 4 mission’s scientific team – the first time they have been involved in a moon landing.

Astrophysicist and Managing Director of the Radboud Radio Lab, Marc Klein Wolt, explains, “With our instrument installed on the relay satellite, we have become the first Dutch team ever to be part of a mission to the moon. That was special enough, but this makes it even more special.” While no instruments from the Netherlands will be on board the Chinese lunar lander itself, the Dutch radio instrument on the satellite and the Chinese radio instrument on board the moon lander will carry out observations together.

Albert-Jan Boonstra, program manager at ASTRON, adds: “We are particularly interested in how well our sensor is doing under the extreme conditions in space, in relation to the design and the sensitivity of the radio instrument on the moon lander. Both instruments are not only designed to collect scientific results, but they also provide us with technical information needed to design a future flock of small astronomical radio satellites.”

A new window to the Universe
Radio astronomers typically use one of the many radio telescopes on earth to make observations, but with the NCLE instrument, the Dutch team is opening a new window to the Universe. They are seeking to tune in to radio signals with wavelengths that cannot be detected on earth due to our planet’s atmosphere. “The NCLE is paving the way for a future large-scale radio experiment on the surface of the moon to observe the weak signal emitted just after the Big Bang, before the first stars were formed. That’s why this moon landing is so interesting, because for the first time, we have the chance to study the conditions for radio astronomy on the moon,” Heino Falcke explains, Professor of Astroparticle Physics and Radio Astronomy, and scientific leader for the NCLE instrument. Moreover, the Chinese lunar lander will only be operational for a month or two, whereas the NCLE is expected to be in service over the next five years. The hope is that the NCLE will be rolled out and switched on a few weeks after a successful landing.


Dutch research team involved in first landing on the far side of the moon - Radboud University

 

[Adam WANG SHANGHAI MEGA]

China successfully launched "one rocket 12 satellites" (including 2 Saudi satellites)
People's Daily 2018-12-07 13:04:09

The rocket was launched at the scene. Hao Wei

At 12:12 on December 7, China used the Long March II carrier rocket at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center to successfully launch the Saudi-5A/5B satellite and launch 10 small satellites. The satellites all enter the intended orbit.

The two Saudi satellites are low-orbit remote sensing satellites developed by King Technology City of Saudi Arabia. Each of them has a mass of 425 kilograms and a design life of 5 years. The payload is a full-color/multi-spectral high-resolution camera, which is mainly used to acquire ground images. The 10 small satellites carried out were developed by Hunan Changsha Tianyi Research Institute and Beijing Jiutian MSI Technology Development Co., Ltd.

This mission is the 293th flight of the Long March series of launch vehicles.

(Source: People's Daily Client)

https://www.toutiao.com/a6632112616112128519/


我国“一箭12星”成功发射升空
人民日报 2018-12-07 13:04:09

火箭发射现场。郝伟 摄

12月7日12时12分，我国在酒泉卫星发射中心用长征二号丁运载火箭，成功将沙特-5A/5B卫星发射升空，搭载发射10颗小卫星。卫星均进入预定轨道。

2颗沙特卫星是沙特国王科技城研制的低轨遥感卫星，每颗质量为425千克，设计寿命5年，有效载荷是1台全色/多光谱高分辨率相机，主要用于获取地面图像。搭载的10颗小卫星分别由湖南长沙天仪研究院、北京九天微星科技发展有限公司等单位研制。

这次任务是长征系列运载火箭的第293次飞行。

(来源:人民日报客户端)

The two Saudi satellites are low-orbit remote sensing satellites developed by King Technology City of Saudi Arabia. Each of them has a mass of 425 kilograms and a design life of 5 years.

and 10 other small satellites. The satellites all enter the intended orbit.

Saudi satellites footages

 

[Adam WANG SHANGHAI MEGA]

China launches Chang'e-4 lunar probe which will land on the back of the moon for the first time in the name of all mankin
Source: Xinhua| 2018-12-08 03:30:06|Editor: yan

China launches Chang'e-4 lunar probe in the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China's Sichuan Province, Dec. 8, 2018. (Xinhua/Jiang Hongjing)

XICHANG, Dec. 8 (Xinhua) -- China's Chang'e-4 lunar probe was launched in the early hours of Saturday, and it is expected to make the first-ever soft landing on the far side of the moon.

A Long March-3B rocket, carrying the probe including a lander and a rover, blasted off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China's Sichuan Province at 2:23 a.m., opening a new chapter in lunar exploration.

The scientific tasks of the Chang'e-4 mission include low-frequency radio astronomical observation, surveying the terrain and landforms, detecting the mineral composition and shallow lunar surface structure, and measuring the neutron radiation and neutral atoms to study the environment on the far side of the moon, the China National Space Administration announced.

China has promoted international cooperation in its lunar exploration program, with four scientific payloads in the Chang'e-4 mission developed by scientists from the Netherlands, Germany, Sweden and Saudi Arabia.

Saturday's launch was the 294th mission of the Long March rocket series.

KEY WORDS:Chang'e-4
http://www.xinhuanet.com/english/2018-12/08/c_137658276.htm

 

[JSCh]

China's First Space Solar Power Plant Test Site to Land in Chongqing
LIAO SHUMIN
DATE : DEC 07 2018/SOURCE : YICAI

China's First Space Solar Power Plant Test Site to Land in Chongqing​

(Yicai Global) Dec. 7 -- The government of Chongqing Bishan District, Chongqing University, China Academy of Space Technology-Xi'an Institute of Space Radio Technology and Xi'an Electronic Science and Technology University signed an agreement yesterday to break ground on the first test site of a space-based solar power plant.

The area covers about 33 acres, including about 17.5 acres of core test grounds, state Xinhua News Agency reported.

Construction will run from next year to 2020, during which time the parties will invest CNY200 million (USD29 million) to erect an experimental launch area, balloon platform and other facilities, and carry out tests of energy transfers with microwaves on a platform floating at a height of between 50 and 300 meters.

The parties will also build small and mid-sized stratospheric solar power stations and realize grid-connected electricity generation from 2021 to 2025. Work on a large-scale space-based solar power plant will start after 2025.

The concept of a space-based solar power plant is that of a power-generation system comprising solar power stations fixed in Earth's orbit, which send electricity to the planet below via wireless connections. Unlike ground facilities, space-based solar power stations are not subject to day and night, weather and other natural factors and thus feature a higher solar energy utilization rate.

China, the US, Japan and others have proposed solar power plants in space, with all in the basic research phase, said Bao Weimin, an academician with the Chinese Academy of Sciences and director of the Science and Technology Committee of Beijing-based China Aerospace Science and Technology.

A solar power plant perched in the ether needs to solve the key problems of how to transport power generation equipment into geosynchronous orbit with large carrier rockets, assemble it in space and generate electricity, and how to transfer electricity to the ground while ensuring the security of equipment operation and environment safety.

"These three issues are still under fundamental exploration," Bao said.