China is gearing up to start construction on its own Starlink scale constellation.
In apparent response to U.S. based company SpaceX’s Starlink system being used and given to Ukraine during the invasion, China is getting ready to create their own version of the constellation. If this isn’t stressing news I am not sure what is.
The launch vehicle will consist of a Long March-5 rocket with a Yuanzheng-2 second stage for the first time. This would allow the rocket to carry a group of satellites to low-earth-orbit. China plans to launch 13,000 satellites for national broadband services.
This action is apparently sparked by Elon Musk’s actions during the Ukraine invasion when he gave them Starlink terminals to use. The Chinese military claims that SpaceX intended for Starlink to be used for military purposes because of it.
The China Academy of Space Technology and Innovation Academy for Microsatellites are working together to manufacture these satellites. Innovation Academy is to deliver 30 of these satellites by the end of the year. The companies involved are ramping up production in order to meet the nation’s goals.
Some concerns about this new constellation is it would likely make international infrastructure a bit more difficult to manage, create more space junk and make coordination and use of LEO a bit more painful. The coordination of LEO makes sense. But the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense published a notice. It stated that the last stage of the vehicle should be de-orbited as per regulation. Satellites and spacecraft should be de-orbited when their design life expires according to their license.
Opinion
As if it couldn’t get any worse. Confirmed, Chinese controlled TikTok is under the microscope as congress decides whether to outright ban the app from the U.S. and China reveals they are going to be making a Starlink like satellite constellation for broadband internet.
I am assuming that this service would not just be for use by the Chinese people, but it would be maybe extended to other people in other countries as an easy method of harvesting data. Who knows possibly it could pose as a more streamline method in delivering cyberattacks.
It could be used as an anti-satellite platform just under the guise of being for communications. It could even be just a massive array of spy satellites.
I am sure there are plenty of regulatory hoops that China might have to run through. But what is really stopping them from launching things into space whenever they want? A piece of digital paper that was signed by a bunch of space fairing nations? As a matter of every nations’ cybersecurity they would do everything to stop this project from coming to fruition.
