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China launches new global positioning satellite

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BEIJING | Sat Jul 31, 2010 11:30pm EDT

BEIJING (Reuters) - China took a further step on Sunday toward ending its dependence on U.S. satellites to provide navigation and positioning services.

A rocket carrying the fifth of a planned array of 35 orbiters blasted off from the Xichang space launch center in Sichuan, southwest China, the official Xinhua news agency reported.

Beijing started a drive to end its reliance on the U.S. Global Positioning System in 2000, when it sent an experimental pair of positioning satellites into orbit.

China's necklace of satellites aims to provide navigation, time and short message services in the Asia-Pacific region before 2012 and will be capable of offering global navigation by 2020, Xinhua said.

The system, codenamed "COMPASS," will be crucial for the transport and oil exploration industries as well as for weather and disaster forecasting, telecommunications and public security, the news agency said.

(Reporting by Alan Wheatley, editing by Jonathan Thatcher)
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Comments (15)
jcorb wrote:
China once again flexing it’s considerable muscles. Reducing still further any dependence on the US.Bit by bit the importance of the United States is being whittled away. Hard to get your head round. What next I wonder?

Aug 01, 2010 4:57am EDT  --  Report as abuse
jonnyrich007 wrote:
What is next is their bubble bursting
and come crawling back to US and its
allies. That’s what’s next. And
what China and its current short-
sighted investors don’t realize is
that all the smart money already
started selling and shorting China in
full correct anticipation of China
crumbling.

Aug 01, 2010 6:54am EDT  --  Report as abuse
jonnyrich007 wrote:
Have you read just how much China is importing from Korea, Europe, and USA?
So they put up a satellite where the
most of the parts and technology came
from Korea and USA and will continue to
come from those two main countries. Please.

Aug 01, 2010 7:10am EDT  --  Report as abuse
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