China launches first satellite in bid to create global communications network and broaden net access

  • The Hongyun Project represents an important part of China’s national policy to commercialise space technologies and broaden net access to rural areas

The Chang'e 4 lunar probe launches from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in southwest China's Sichuan Province. Photo: Xinhua via AP

China has successfully launched its first satellite aimed at building a global communications network that could bring the internet to about 600 million Chinese still without access.

The world’s second-largest economy launched the technology experiment satellite (TES) in late December as part of its ambitious Hongyun Project, a low-orbit broadband communications satellite system aimed at global coverage with a network of small satellites about 1,000 kilometres above the Earth.

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