Exciting times ahead in the skies

The last satellite for China's Beidou Nagivation Satellite System is planned to be launched on Tuesday. On Monday, the carrier rocket for the satellite, Long March 3B, was all set for launch having cleared all tests and been filled with propellant.

In other words, the satellite is just waiting for its launch window to open. This is not just another satellite. Being the last in the series, it will complete and raise the efficiency of services the Beidou-3 system provides for China and its neighboring regions. More importantly, it will propel Beidou from being a regional service provider to a global one.

It will be the 30th satellite in the third-generation series when it begins working with other Beidou satellites, allowing users around the globe to access high-accuracy navigation, positioning and timing services.

The launch will mark the completion of Beidou, the country's largest space-based system and one of the four global navigation networks, along with the United States' GPS, Russia's GLONASS and the European Union's Galileo.

It is estimated that Beidou-3 can provide free positioning service at an accuracy level of 10 meters, and time service at a deviation of 10 nanoseconds; the accuracy will be even higher for paid users. Which means the Chinese navigation system will soon enjoy advantages over its European counterpart.

So, exciting times lie ahead with the last satellite of the system set to be in orbit.