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China Claims First Satellite Refueling in High Orbit
The mission could extend satellite lifespans and reduce replacement costs, while China says it still needs cryogenic transfer technology for future deep-space flights.
- Researchers from the Deep Space Exploration Laboratory reported successfully performing the first room-temperature propellant refuelling of a high-orbit BeiDou satellite earlier this year, according to a paper in the Chinese Journal undergoing peer review.
- BeiDou satellites serve as China's answer to the Global Positioning System , requiring finite propellant for station-keeping and orbit corrections to maintain critical positioning and navigation services on Earth.
- The operation involved transferring storable chemical propellant from a "tanker satellite" to the target, a process researchers noted is substantially easier than transferring cryogenic fuel, which requires complex thermal management.
- This capability extends the usable life of BeiDou satellites, enabling each refuelling satellite to service multiple units in one trip and eliminating the need to develop and launch costly replacements.
- While this mission provided valuable experience, researchers emphasized the necessity of developing cryogenic transfer technologies, which would offer superior performance for large spacecraft and future deep-space exploration missions.
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China claims to have supplied in orbit a leading satellite of the BeiDou network, extending its life by eight years. A breakthrough that cuts space costs, alarms the U.S. defense for possible war uses and opens a yellow on orbital data. The article Orbital War and billions saved: China fills up satellites in space and displaces the U.S. comes from Economic Scenarios.
Claims China's BeiDou satellite was refuelled in orbit could change space race
Chinese researchers say they carried out a satellite-to-satellite refuelling operation on a BeiDou satellite in high Earth orbit, according to a paper under peer review. If confirmed, the technology could reshape the global space race.
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