China to launch up to 3 BeiDou backup satellites in 2023

BEIJING, April 27 (Xinhua) -- China plans to send one to three network backup satellites for the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) into space this year to improve the stability and usability of the constellation, according to the 13th China Satellite Navigation Conference on Thursday.

As a national major sci-tech project, the BDS is a global navigation satellite system, constructed and operated independently by China. Currently, it has 45 satellites in orbit, including 15 for BDS-2 and 30 for BDS-3.

All the satellites are connected to the network and run stably. The system's services such as global and regional short message communication, international search and rescue, precise single point positioning, and space-based and ground-based enhancement, all meet the target requirements.

The BDS was initiated in 1994. The construction of BDS-1 and BDS-2 was completed in 2000 and 2012, respectively. When BDS-3 was completed and put into service on July 31, 2020, China became the third country globally to have an independent global navigation satellite system.

China will accelerate the integration of BDS with emerging technologies such as 5G, artificial intelligence and big data. It aims to build a more ubiquitous, integrated, and intelligent national spatial and temporal system by 2035.

The 3-day conference kicked off Wednesday in Beijing. More than 4,000 experts and scholars from home and abroad in the satellite navigation field attended the conference online and offline.