China to launch first private 5G satellite

China's first private 5G low-orbit broadband satellite has passed factory tests and is expected to be launched at the end of the year, chinanews.com reported.

It is China’s first satellite developed by a commercial aerospace company that weighs around 200 kg.

With a communication capacity of 10 gigabytes per second, the satellite will run along an orbit 1,200 kilometers above the earth, sending signals to a 300,000 square kilometer area roughly equal to 50 times the area of Shanghai.

The satellite, made by GalaxySpace, will be launched via the domestically made KZ-1A carrier rocket at the end of December.

Xu Ming, founder of GalaxySpace, said the launch of the satellite could mark the first step of its “space internet” project.

The company wants to develop more low-cost, high-performance 5G satellites in the future, so as to fill digital gaps and connect the world with the 5G satellite network, he added.

Low-orbit broadband communications satellites could overcome challenges that ground base stations currently confront in covering areas such as deserts and the ocean, and shed light on those living in places where communication signals rarely reach, the report said.