At 20 minutes past midnight Beijing Time (16:20 UTC Dec. 20), a Changzheng-3A (Long March-3A) rocket roared through the night sky at the Xichang Satellite Launching Center (XSLC) in the southwestern Sichuan Province and carried the Beidou Navigation Test Satellite-1B into space (BNTS-1B; "Beidou" means "Northern Dipper", a reference to the celestial constellation).

Eight minutes later the launcher debris recovery team at the Kaiyang and Fuquan observing stations in the neighbouring Guizhou Province heard a loud bang and spotted flames from the debris impact of the first stage at the Yezhushan district in Fuquan city, some 550 km downrange ESE of the launch centre. In about an hour the recovery team arrived at the scene, secured the area and began the recovery operation. There were no reports of personal injury or property damage.

Twenty-seven minutes after launch BNTS-1B "accurately entered the predetermined orbit", whose parameters were not disclosed in the Xinhua announcement. According to information obtained from the Orbital Information Group (OIG) at NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, BNTS-1B achieved an initial highly elliptical transfer orbit -- much like its sister craft BNTS-1 soon after launch.

In the following week, ground controllers at the Xi'an Satellite Control Centre (XSCC) in the central Shaanxi Province manoeuvred the spacecraft to its final geostationary orbit. As of the end of 2000, the orbit of BNTS-1B is 35776 x 35796 km with an inclination of 0.1 deg and a period of 1,436.1 min. (i.e. one rotation of the Earth). The satellite is stationed over the Equator at 80 deg E. longitude.

On Oct. 31 another CZ-3A launched BNTS-1 into space. In a three-week period, ground controllers manoeuvred the satellite into its final geostationary orbit. BNTS-1 now orbits the Earth at an average distance of 35,785 km at 140 deg E. longitude over the Equator.

With the successful insertion of BNTS-1B into its orbital slot, China completes its first generation of the domestically built twin-satellite navigation and positioning system, the Beidou Navigation System (BNS). The system will meet the increasing domestic demands of satellite navigation.

The Space Technology Research Institute, one of the five major research institutions of the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), developed and built both BNTS satellites.

CASC indicates that the navigation system would be an "all-weather, all-time operation" which delivers regional satellite navigation information.

In an interview with China Youth Daily on Friday (Jan. 5), Deputy Chief Designer of BNTS Li Hairu said that the Beidou satellite navigation and positioning system would cover all of China. When the system is operational, BNS will be used primarily in highway and railway transportation, and seafaring in the Pacific Ocean. The benefits of BNS will thrust development of the national economy.

"Previously our transportation and surveying departments essentially had to rely on the foreign GPS system [Global Positioning Satellite system of the U.S.] for positioning work. We also used methods such as aerial surveying and telecommunications, but these were time consuming and expensive.

"With BNS users can quickly and efficiently determine the latitude, longitude and altitude of any location. In scientific expeditions and emergency and disaster rescue, satellite navigation and positioning is particularly needed."

Li said that that only U.S. and Russia had their own satellite navigation systems. The U.S. NAVSTAR Global Positioning System (GPS) deploys a constellation of 28 satellites to provide global coverage. The Russian Global Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS) system also has 24 satellites but only 11 of them are functional.

Li also said that China began planning of the second generation satellite navigation and positioning system. The new system would have more satellites and an expanded coverage area.

The BNTS-1B launch is the 64th flight of the Changzheng series of launchers and the 22nd consecutive successful launch since October 1996.

The launch was the last Chinese blast off of the 20th century and caps the perfect record of five successful launches in 2000.

The first successful launch of 2000 came on Jan. 26 when a CZ-3A rocket delivered Zhongxing-22 comsat (ZX-22, Zhongxing means "China Star") to a geostationary transfer orbit. CZ-3A is a product of the Chinese Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT), which is part of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC).

On June 25 a CZ-3 successfully launched Fengyun-2B (FY-2B, Fengyun means "Wind and Cloud") metsat to an initial geostationary transfer orbit.

Then two CZ-3As lofted the twin BNTS-1 and -1B into space on Oct. 31 and Dec. 21.

The fifth successful launch of the year belongs to CZ-4B, which is made by the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology (SAST). On Sept. 1 a CZ-4B carried Ziyuan-2 (ZY-2, "Ziyuan" means resource) remote sensing satellite into a sunsynchronous orbit.

Related Links
SpaceDaily
Search SpaceDaily
Subscribe To SpaceDaily Express

Thanks for being here; We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain. With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords. Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year. If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.
SpaceDaily Contributor $5 Billed Once credit card or paypal		SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter $5 Billed Monthly paypal only