China launches a new BDS-3 satellite
China sent a new satellite of the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) into space from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan Province at 17:43:04.482 UTC on Nov. 5.
Launched on a Long March-3B carrier rocket, it is the 49th satellite of the BDS satellite family and the 24th satellite of the BDS-3 system.
It also marked that a total of three BDS-3 satellites have been sent into the inclined geosynchronous Earth orbit.
The launch was the 317th mission for the Long March series of carrier rockets.
The new satellites and the carrier rocket were developed by the China Academy of Space Technology and the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation.
China will launch another six BDS-3 satellites to complete the BDS global network.
A new BeiDou satellite is launched from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China’s Sichuan Province on Nov. 5. (Photo: Liu Xu/Xinhua)
About the Author: Tracy Cozzens
Senior Editor Tracy Cozzens joined GPS World magazine in 2006. She also is editor of GPS World’s newsletters and the sister website Geospatial Solutions. She has worked in government, for non-profits, and in corporate communications, editing a variety of publications for audiences ranging from federal government contractors to teachers.
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