China recently made headlines as it launched its own constellation of over 15,000 low-Earth orbit satellites, named Thousand Sails, to directly compete with Elon Musk's SpaceX's Starlink. This move is significant as it aims to offer global internet coverage, with the first batch of 18 satellites successfully deployed using a Long March 6A carrier rocket from the Taiyuan launch center in China's Shanxi Province.
The success of this initial launch was confirmed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, with plans to expand the Thousand Sails network to 648 satellites by 2025 in order to establish a comprehensive global internet network. This venture is the latest addition to China's advancements in the space sector, following the completion of the BeiDou network in 2020, which serves as a global navigation system comparable to the U.S.-owned Global Positioning System (GPS).
China's space program has been a focal point of worldwide interest due to its significant progress, including endeavors such as the Chang'e-6 mission to explore the far side of the moon and potential future missions that could involve crewed landings and base constructions on the lunar surface. Despite these impressive achievements, concerns have been raised regarding the military implications of China's space activities, particularly with speculations about technologies being tested for satellite manipulation or retrieval that could have military applications. Additionally, the ongoing technological rivalry between China and the U.S. adds another layer of complexity, as demonstrated by concerns raised by U.S. authorities regarding potential espionage threats to undersea internet cables in the Pacific Ocean by Chinese repair ships.