Dragon in Space - The Chinese space program, past and present

Yaogan

Yaogan Weixing (“Remote-Sensing Satellite”), or Yaogan, is a series of Earth observation satellites launched by China since 2006. Chinese media has described these as remote-sensing satellites for land survey, disaster forecasting, crops yield evaluation, urban planning and scientific experiments purposes. However, it is widely believed that these satellites are actually operated by the People’s Liberation Army for intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) roles.

Despite carrying the same designation, the Yaogan satellites actually include several different variants in two main categories: synthetic aperture radar (SAR) surveillance satellites and electro-optical digital imagery satellites. The radar-equipped Yaogan satellites, developed by Shanghai-based SAST, were mostly launched from the Taiyuan launch centre onboard the CZ-4C rocket. The optical Yaogan satellites, developed by Beijing-based CAST, were mostly launched from the Jiuquan launch centre onboard the CZ-2D rocket. Both types operated in high-inclination polar orbits of 630~670km.

Chronology

2006-04-27 - 06:48 CST (2006-04-26 22:48 GMT) Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch complex: LC7. Launch Vehicle: CZ-4C

Yaogan 1 - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Contractor: SAST. Operator: PLA. Mass: 2,700kg. Operational life: 2 years. The first-generation synthetic aperture radar (SAR) reconnaissance satellite, possibly known as Jianbing 5 in its military designation. The satellite was equipped with an L-band SAR system with two working mode. In the high-resolution mode, the system had a spatial resolution of 5m and a field of view of 40km. In the low-resolution mode the system had a spatial resolution of 20m and a field of view of 100km.

Yaogan 1

2007-05-25 - 15:12 CST (07:12 GMT). Launch site: Jiuquan. Launch complex: SLS2 (Pad "603"). Launch vehicle: CZ-2D

Yaogan 2 - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Spacecraft: CAST-2000. Contractor: China SpaceSat/CAST. Operator: PLA. Apogee: 664km. Perigee: 638km. Inclination: 97.9°. Also known as Jianbing 6 in its military designation, this is a electro-optical digital imaging satellite based on the CAST-2000 small satellite bus with 3-axis stabilisation and orbit manoeuvre capability. Mission payload includes a CCD camera, an S-band TT&C sub-system, and an X-band data link. It was reported by a Chinese newspaper that the resolution of the camera onboard the Yaogan 2 satellite was twice of that of the Ziyuan 2 (3m resolution), while its mass is only 1/5 of the latter. This means that the Yaogan 2 achieved an estimated spatial resolution of about 1.5m. Data is transmitted to the ground through an X-Band data link.
PicoSat 1 - Role: technology demonstration. Contractor: Zhejiang University.

2007-11-12 - 06:48 CST (2007-11-11 22:48 GMT). Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch complex: LC7. Launch Vehicle: CZ-4C

Yaogan 3 - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Contractor: SAST. Operator: PLA. Mass: 2,700kg. Operational life: 2 years. The 2nd satellite of the Yaogan 1 series SAR satellite.

2008-12-01 - 12:42 CST (04:42 GMT). Launch site: Jiuquan. Launch complex: SLS2 (Pad "603"). Launch vehicle: CZ-2D

Yaogan 4 - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Spacecraft: CAST-2000. Contractor: China SpaceSat/CAST. Operator: PLA. The 2nd satellite of the Yaogan 2 series optical reconnaissance satellite.

2008-12-15 - 11:22 CST (03:22 GMT). Launch site: Jiuquan. Launch complex: SLS2 (Pad "603"). Launch vehicle: CZ-2D

Yaogan 5 - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Spacecraft: CAST-2000. Contractor: China SpaceSat/CAST. Operator: PLA. The second-generation electro-optical reconnaissance satellite developed by CAST, possibly known as Jianbing 8 in its military designation. The satellite operated in a 481X498km polar orbit with an inclination of 97.3°. The spatial resolution of its optical package was estimated to be around 1m.

Yaogan 5

2009-04-22 - 10:55 CST (03:55 GMT). Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch complex: LC9. Launch Vehicle: CZ-2C

Yaogan 6 - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Contractor: SAST. Operator: PLA. Second-generation synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite developed by SAST. The satellite was equipped with an SAR package which had a spatial resolution of 1.5m.

2009-12-09 - 16:42 CST (08:42 GMT). Launch site: Jiuquan. Launch complex: SLS2 (Pad "603"). Launch vehicle: CZ-2D

Yaogan 7 - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Spacecraft: CAST-2000. Contractor: China SpaceSat/CAST. Operator: PLA. The 3rd satellite of the Yaogan 2 series optical reconnaissance satellite.

2009-12-15 - 10:31 CST (02:31 GMT). Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch complex: LC9. Launch Vehicle: CZ-4C

Yaogan 8 - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Contractor: SAST. Operator: PLA. New-generation optical reconnaissance satellite.
Xiwang 1 - Role: Miniaturised armature radio communications.

2010-03-05 - 12:55 CST (03:55 GMT). Launch site: Jiuquan. Launch complex: SLS2 (Pad "603"). Launch vehicle: CZ-4C

Yaogan 9A/9B/9C - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Contractor: China SpaceSat/CAST. Operator: PLA. The 3rd satellite of the Yaogan 2 series optical reconnaissance satellite.
Yaogan 9 was reported to be a satellite constellation similar to the U.S. Naval Ocean Surveillance System (NOSS) / Whitecloud. It consists of three small satellites, Yaogan 9A, B, and C, flying in close proximity on 1,047km circular orbit, with an inclination of 63.4°. The contractor is China SpaceSat Co.Ltd., a commercial branch of CAST.

The Yaogan 9 constellation, which comprises the electro-optical surveillance satellite, the synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite, and possibly the electronic/signal intelligence (ELINT/SIGINT) satellite, was designed for locating and tracking foreign warships, in particular aircraft carrier battle groups (ACBG), by collecting the ships’ optical and radio electronic signatures. Combined with other systems such as maritime surveillance satellites and data relay satellites, the constellation could provide an over-the-horizon reconnaissance and target designation capability for China’s maritime strike forces, such as the anti-ship ballistic missile (ASBM) system.

2010-08-10 - 06:48 CST (2010-08-09 22:48 GMT). Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch complex: LC9. Launch Vehicle: CZ-4C

Yaogan 10 - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Contractor: SAST. Operator: PLA. SAR reconnaissance satellite.

2010-09-22 - 10:42 CST (02:42 GMT). Launch site: Jiuquan. Launch complex: SLS2 (Pad "603"). Launch vehicle: CZ-2D

Yaogan 11 - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Contractor: China SpaceSat/CAST. Operator: PLA. Optical reconnaissance satellite.
PicoSat 1A-01 - Role: technology demonstration. Contractor: Zhejiang University. Mass: 3.5kg
PicoSat 1A-02 - Role: technology demonstration. Contractor: Zhejiang University. Mass: 3.5kg

2011-11-09 - 11:21 CST (03:21 GMT). Launch site: Jiuquan. Launch complex: SLS2 (Pad "603"). Launch vehicle: CZ-2D

Yaogan 12 - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Contractor: China SpaceSat/CAST. Operator: PLA. Optical reconnaissance satellite.
Tianxun 1 - Role: technology demonstration. Contractor: Nanjing University of Aeronautics and Astronautics.

2011-11-30 - 02:50 CST (2011-11-29 18:50 GMT). Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch complex: LC9. Launch Vehicle: CZ-4C

Yaogan 13 - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Contractor: SAST. Operator: PLA. SAR reconnaissance satellite.

2012-05-10 - 15:06 CST (07:06 GMT). Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch complex: LC9. Launch Vehicle: CZ-4B

Yaogan 14 - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Contractor: CAST. Operator: PLA. Optical reconnaissance satellite.
Tiantuo 1 - Role: Vessel automatic identification system. Mass: 9.3kg. Contractor: National University of Defence Technology (NUDT).

2012-05-29 - 15:31:05 CST (07:31:05 GMT). Launch Site: Taiyuan. Launch complex: LC9. Launch Vehicle: CZ-4C

Yaogan 15 - Role: Remote-sensing / military reconnaissance. Programme: Yaogan. Contractor: SAST. Operator: PLA. Optical reconnaissance satellite.

Venezuelan Remote-Sensing Satellite 1 - Scheduled to be launched in 2012

Venezuelan Remote-Sensing Satellite 1 (VRSS-1) is a remote-sensing satellite designed and built for the Bolivarian Agency for Space Activities (ABAE), as part of a satellite launch service package worth an estimated US$140 million. The satellite is believed to be based on the Yaogan 2 technology, using a three-axis stabilised CAST-2000 satellite bus. Mission payloads will possibly include panchromatic CCD cameras, infrared multispectral scanner, S-band TT&C sub-system, and X-band data link. The special resolution of the CCD camera package is estimated to be around 2.5m.

Last updated: 29 May 2012