31 BeiDou satellites in orbit following latest BDS launch

Two satellites of China’s domestically-developed BeiDou-3 Navigation Satellite System (BDS) were launched into the space Friday morning on a carrier rocket, with specialists saying the BDS technology has greatly matured.

The Long March-3B carrier rocket lifted off from Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Southwest China’s Sichuan Province at 1:56 am. The launch was the 269th mission in the family of Long March rockets, the Xinhua News Agency reported.

The twin satellites are the 30th and 31st in the array of BDS satellites.

“This year the launch schedule for BeiDou system is busy and China’s capability of sending two satellites at one time makes the launch more efficient,” Jiao Weixin, a space science professor at Peking University, told the Global Times on Friday.

The satellites entered orbit more than three hours after launch and will work together with six previously launched BeiDou-3 satellites once they pass a series of tests.

“The BeiDou-3 satellites have gained from the expertise from previous launches and experiments and are more advanced and more accurate,” Jiao said.

The satellites and the rocket in Friday’s launch were developed by the Innovation Academy for Microsatellites at the Chinese Academy of Sciences and China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, according to the report of Xinhua.

Named after the Chinese term for the Big Dipper, the BeiDou system started providing independent navigation services over China in 2000 and will serve countries along the Belt and Road initiative by the end of 2018.

By around 2020, when the BDS goes global, it will have 35 satellites, the China News Service reported.