The first batch of 18 satellites in the constellation dubbed ’thousand sails’ has been launched into orbit.
In its latest attempt to challenge the United States’ space dominance and SpaceX’s Starlink, China launched a low-orbit satellite constellation capable of surveilling every corner of the earth.
According to Chinese state media, the first batch of 18 satellites in the constellation dubbed “Qianfan” or “thousand sails” was launched into orbit by state-controlled Shanghai Yuxin Satellite Technology Company on Aug. 6. The entire project is a future network of 14,000 satellites, offering multiple services, including direct-to-device connectivity. Half of those spacecraft will be launched by the end of next year and another half by the end of 2027.
Starlink, owned by the U.S. company SpaceX, has provided Ukraine with Internet and communication services, a critical element to sustain the nation in its war with Russia. As of Aug. 2, the network had about 7,000 satellites in orbit, making it the largest low-orbit constellation in the world.
The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) noticed as well.
In April, the regime’s PLA Daily newspaper, the official newspaper for the CCP’s People’s Liberation Army, accused the United States of “militarizing space.”
Chinese military researchers analyzed various capabilities of Starlink in 2022. They wrote that Starlink poses “potential dangers and challenges” to the CCP. The researchers called on the regime to develop new countermeasures that would include abilities “to disable some Starlink satellites and to disrupt the constellation’s operational system.”
Last year, scientists at the University of Aerospace Engineering, a PLA research university, proposed methods to “suppress” Starlink and Starshield’s communications, including electromagnetic interference and employing high-power microwaves or lasers to damage or destroy specific Starlink satellites.
CCP’s Space Ambitions and Challenges
The Qianfan Constellation project was not the CCP’s first attempt.
Si-Fu Ou, a senior fellow and director of the Division of Chinese Politics, Military, and Warfighting Concepts at Taiwan’s Institute for National Defense and Security Research, told The Epoch Times that China’s satellite constellation development is for military purposes.
He said that the CCP’s anti-satellite capabilities are already a reality and will continue to advance. However, given the United States’ current technological and military strength, China’s satellite constellation is unlikely to catch up with the United States in the short term.
“This effort aims to showcase its ‘self-sufficiency’ capabilities and to prepare for potential conflicts with the United States,” Lin said.
Xin Ning contributed to the report.