China Launches International 3D Satellite Network Plan to Monitor Solar Activity and Cosmic Explosions
SCMP · 2 SOURCESabout 4 hours ago2 MIN
Summary
China has officially launched an ambitious international project to construct a three-dimensional satellite network spanning the space between Earth and the moon. The initiative, announced by the Deep Space Exploration Laboratory at the 2026 Deep Space Exploration (Tiandu) International Conference in Hefei, Anhui Province on Friday, aims to systematically monitor solar activity and detect some of the universe's most powerful cosmic explosions. The project brings together multiple countries in a collaborative effort to fill critical gaps in space observation capabilities.
Key Points
- The Deep Space Exploration Laboratory announced the plan at the 2026 Deep Space Exploration (Tiandu) International Conference in Hefei, Anhui Province on September 4, 2026
- The constellation will consist of 30 CubeSats weighing no more than 30 kilograms each, to be deployed in six batches around 2030
- These 12U CubeSats will be positioned in 1:3 Earth-moon resonant highly elliptical orbits and lunar orbits to form a 3D observation network
- Participating countries include Egypt, Indonesia, Senegal, Serbia, and Thailand, which will jointly design missions and share scientific data
- The satellites will monitor space weather by tracking energetic particles and magnetic disturbances from the sun sweeping through cislunar space
- Instruments will also hunt for gamma-ray bursts, detecting the same burst from multiple locations to pinpoint sources more precisely
Why It Matters
Cislunar space, extending from low-Earth orbit to approximately 2 million kilometres from Earth, represents a new frontier for human activity and is crucial for future crewed moon missions and lunar base construction . By transforming cislunar exploration from a single-point discontinuous model to networked continuous observation, this project could provide developing nations with opportunities to participate in deep-space exploration through technical training and shared engineering standards .
Cislunar space, extending from low-Earth orbit to approximately 2 million kilometres from Earth, represents a new frontier for human activity and is crucial for future crewed moon missions and lunar base construction . By transforming cislunar exploration from a single-point discontinuous model to networked continuous observation, this project could provide developing nations with opportunities to participate in deep-space exploration through technical training and shared engineering standards .