China wraps up space plan with three experimental satellites

China launched three experimental satellites into space on Saturday morning, according to China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp, the nation's leading space contractor.

The satellites, in the Space-based Internet Technology Demonstrator series, have been designed and built by the China Academy of Space Technology in Beijing.

They were transported into their preset orbit by a Long March 2C carrier rocket that blasted off at 8:13 am at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China's Gobi Desert.

The mission marked the fourth orbital deployment of satellites in the Space-based Internet Technology Demonstrator series. The first launch of such satellites took place in July, followed by another two in November and December.

A product of the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology in Beijing, the Long March 2C rocket type is 43 meters long and 3.35 meters wide and has a liftoff weight of 242.5 metric tons. The rocket is mainly used to deploy satellites to low-Earth and Sun-synchronous orbits.

Both academies involved in the mission are subsidiaries of the State-owned conglomerate China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp.

Sources inside the space industry said the mission marked the completion of China's annual space launch plan in 2023.

So far, China has carried out 67 rocket launches this year and 47 of them were conducted by the Long March rocket family, the nation's main launch vehicle fleet.

A remarkable phenomenon is that a total of 12 rockets built by private Chinese companies were used to send satellites this year, far more than previous years, representing a rising power in the country's space sector.