{"id":1484104,"date":"2024-08-16T16:20:00","date_gmt":"2024-08-16T20:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/?p=1484104"},"modified":"2024-08-16T16:20:00","modified_gmt":"2024-08-16T20:20:00","slug":"china-launches-own-version-of-starlink-to-challenge-us-dominance-in-space","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/china-launches-own-version-of-starlink-to-challenge-us-dominance-in-space\/1484104\/","title":{"rendered":"China Launches Own Version of Starlink To Challenge US Dominance In Space"},"content":{"rendered":"

China Launches Own Version of Starlink To Challenge US Dominance In Space<\/span><\/p>\n

\n

Authored by Jon Sun and Michael Zhuang via The Epoch Times<\/a> (emphasis ours),<\/em><\/p>\n

In its latest attempt to challenge the United States\u2019 space dominance and SpaceX\u2019s Starlink, China launched a low-orbit satellite constellation capable of surveilling every corner of the earth.<\/strong><\/p>\n

A Long March-2C rocket, carrying the Einstein Probe satellite, lifts off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Xichang, in southwestern China’s Sichuan province on Jan. 9, 2024. (STR\/AFP via Getty Images)<\/em><\/a><\/p>\n

According to Chinese state media, the first batch of 18 satellites in the constellation dubbed \u201cQianfan\u201d or \u201cthousand sails\u201d was launched into orbit by state-controlled Shanghai Yuxin Satellite Technology Company on Aug. 6<\/strong>. The entire project is a future network of 14,000 satellites<\/strong>, offering multiple services, including direct-to-device connectivity.\u00a0Half of those spacecraft will be launched by the end of next year and another half by the end of 2027.<\/p>\n

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.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Starlink\u2019s capability had attracted the attention of the U.S. Department of Defense, which contracted SpaceX in 2021<\/a>\u00a0to create a network of satellites known as Starshield to serve America\u2019s defense and intelligence agencies.<\/p>\n

The Chinese Communist Party (CCP) noticed as well.<\/p>\n

In April, the regime\u2019s PLA Daily newspaper, the official newspaper for the CCP\u2019s People\u2019s Liberation Army, accused the United States of \u201cmilitarizing space.\u201d<\/p>\n

Chinese military researchers analyzed various capabilities of Starlink in 2022. They wrote that Starlink poses \u201cpotential dangers and challenges\u201d to the CCP. The researchers called on the regime to develop new countermeasures that would include abilities \u201cto disable some Starlink satellites and to disrupt the constellation\u2019s operational system.\u201d<\/p>\n

Last year, scientists\u00a0at the University of Aerospace Engineering, a PLA research university, proposed methods to \u201csuppress\u201d Starlink and Starshield\u2019s communications,<\/strong> including electromagnetic interference and\u00a0employing high-power microwaves or lasers to damage or destroy specific Starlink satellites.<\/p>\n

In addition, Chinese defense journals have analyzed Ukrainian operations and the potential use of American technologies, including Starlink, in a future war against Taiwan, according to a Reuters report<\/a> in 2023.<\/p>\n

Gen. Stephen N. Whiting, head of U.S. Space Command, warned<\/a> in April that China\u2019s advances in space were \u201cbreathtakingly fast.\u201d<\/p>\n

CCP\u2019s Space Ambitions and Challenges<\/strong><\/h2>\n

The Qianfan Constellation project was not the CCP\u2019s first attempt.<\/p>\n

The launch of Starlink satellites in 2019 marked the introduction of a satellite internet system with global coverage that posed a potential threat to China\u2019s internet firewall. Starlink may offer services to China that can bypass the CCP\u2019s current internet censorship<\/a>. Elon Musk said in 2022 that the Chinese regime requested him not to sell Starlink in China.<\/p>\n

The following year, the CCP submitted the \u201cGW\u201d\u2014acronym for Guo Wang<\/a> or national network\u2014internet constellation plan to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)<\/strong>, aiming to launch around 13,000 satellites into low orbit. However, the GW plan was slow and failed to become the first to launch satellites for the CCP.<\/p>\n

Through the Qianfan Constellation project, the CCP seizes Low-Earth Orbit (LEO) and frequency resources\u2014currently overseen by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) on a \u201cfirst come, first served\u201d basis\u2014to build its network system. Due to its closer distance to Earth, the\u00a0LEO<\/a> is advantageous in imaging, communications, and real-time information sharing on the battlefield.<\/p>\n

Si-Fu Ou, a senior fellow and director of the Division of Chinese Politics, Military, and Warfighting Concepts at Taiwan\u2019s Institute for National Defense and Security Research, told The Epoch Times that China\u2019s satellite constellation development is for military purposes.<\/strong><\/p>\n

He said that the CCP\u2019s anti-satellite capabilities are already a reality and will continue to advance. However, given the United States\u2019 current technological and military strength, China\u2019s satellite constellation is unlikely to catch up with the United States in the short term.<\/p>\n

Tsungnan Lin, a professor of electrical engineering at National Taiwan University, told The Epoch Times that China\u2019s investments in Qianfan showcase the regime\u2019s ambitions to develop a \u201cChinese Starlink\u201d despite the country\u2019s current economic downturn. The Chinese economy<\/a> has been marred by deflation threats, reduced exports, and heavily indebted property markets and local governments.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis effort aims to showcase its \u2018self-sufficiency\u2019 capabilities and to prepare for potential conflicts with the United States<\/strong>,\u201d Lin said.<\/p>\n

Xin Ning contributed to the report.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Tyler Durden<\/a><\/span>
\nFri, 08\/16\/2024 – 12:20<\/span><\/p>\n

\u200bhttps:\/\/www.zerohedge.com\/geopolitical\/china-launches-own-version-starlink-challenge-us-dominance-space<\/a>\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

China Launches Own Version of Starlink To Challenge US Dominance In Space Authored by Jon Sun and Michael Zhuang via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":1484105,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1484104","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","wpcat-1-id"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1484104","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1484104"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1484104\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1484105"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1484104"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1484104"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/bugaluu.com\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1484104"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}