Navigating And Serving

The completion of the Beidou satellite navigation network opens up new opportunities for China to serve the world

- Li Jing

On the morning of June 23, the world’s attention was focused on the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwestern China’s Sichuan Province. At 9:43 a.m., the 55th and final satellite of the Beidou Satellite Navigation System (BDS) was successfully put into orbit. This launch marked the completion of the so-called Beidou constellation, six months ahead of schedule. Developed independently by China, BDS is now one of the four navigation networks currently active globally, alongside the United States’ GPS, Russia’s GLONASS and the European Union’s Galileo.

“This is a historical milestone. It’s a significant step toward increasing the availability of precise geolocation services through global navigation satellite systems, or GNSS, for people all over the world,” said Simonetta Di Pippo, Director of United Nations Office for Outer Space Affairs, following the successful final launch.

As a matter of fact, BDS is already part of people’s daily lives, both in China and abroad. According to Wang Zhaoyao, Chairman of the Chinese Satellite Navigation Committee, the Beidou system is being used in various fields such as transportation, agriculture, surveying, mapping, disaster prevention and mitigation, among others. In 2019, the total value of output of China’s satellite navigation and positioning services industry reached 345 billion yuan ($49.4 billion). More than 80 percent of this value came from the Beidou system, added Wang.