China plans 30-satellite information superhighway to connect Earth, moon
China is setting its sights on cislunar space dominance. It has unveiled plans for a comprehensive satellite network to revolutionize communication, navigation, and monitoring capabilities between Earth and the moon.
The network would offer real-time communication, navigation, and monitoring services to global users. This proposal comes from researchers at the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST) and the Beijing Institute of Spacecraft System Engineering.
The aim is to allow 20 or more travelers to simultaneously communicate with Earth through images, audio, or video. The network would also offer accurate positioning, navigation, and timing (PNT) for Earth-moon flights and lunar surface operations.
Additionally, it would be capable of monitoring and tracking moving targets as small as one meter (3.28 feet) in cislunar space, the region between Earth and the moon, as detailed by researchers in the journal Chinese Space Science and Technology in June, according to The South China Morning Post reports.
New frontier for human activity and global competition
According to Yang Mengfei, chief designer of China’s Chang’e-5 mission, and his team, the Cislunar space has emerged as a new frontier for human activities. “Activities in this region are expected to expand rapidly over the next decade, fueling a new wave of global competition,” Yang’s team wrote.
Cislunar space refers to the region between Earth and the moon, including the orbits of satellites around Earth, the space within the moon’s orbit, and the area in between.
“The competition for resources such as orbital slots and radio frequencies is already on, and will only get more intense in the future. There’s an urgent need for China to establish a top-level road map to develop cislunar space infrastructure and gain a competitive edge in the emerging cislunar economy,” the team noted.
Cislunar space gains military focus
Recent years have seen cislunar space become increasingly relevant, especially in the military sector. For instance, the United States Air Force is developing the Cislunar Highway Patrol System, a satellite designed to detect, track, and identify artificial objects at lunar distances—272,000 miles (437,000 km)—a range exceeding ten times the traditional geostationary detection range of 22,236 miles (35,785 km).
Civil space agencies in the US, Europe, and Japan have also proposed similar infrastructure to support scientific exploration and commercial operations on the moon.
As China emerges as a key player in lunar and deep space exploration, strategic planning is essential to “avoid redundant construction and optimize resource allocation” for future missions, according to the researchers.
This includes crewed lunar landings, building an international lunar research station, and exploring the outer solar system.
According to Yang and his team, China’s cislunar infrastructure will develop in three stages. The first stage will support moon missions with two satellites and a lunar control station for communication with up to 10 users.
The second stage will add ten satellites and a second lunar station, increasing data rates to 5 gigabytes per second and improving navigation accuracy to 100 meters.
The final stage will expand to 30 satellites and three lunar stations, aiming for 10 gigabytes per second data rates and 10-meter navigation accuracy for lunar activities and 50 meters for Earth-moon travel.
Source: Interesting Engineering
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