III.
Development Targets and Major Tasks for the Next Five Years
"The Outline of the 11th Five-Year Program for National Economic and Social
Development" and "The National Guideline for Medium- and Long-term Plans for
Science and Technology Development (2006-2020)" formulated by the Chinese
government in 2006 put the space industry in an important position. Based on the
above two documents, the Chinese government has drawn up a new development plan
for China's space industry, defining development targets and major tasks for the
next five years or more. According to this plan, the country will launch and
continue key space projects, including manned spaceflight, lunar exploration,
high-resolution Earth observation, new-generation carrier rockets, and a group
of priority projects in key sectors. It will also strengthen basic research,
make arrangements ahead of schedule, develop frontier space technology, and
accelerate progress and innovation in space science and
technology.
Development Targets
To remarkably improve the country's capabilities and reliability of carrier
rockets in space; to build a long-term, stably operated Earth observation
system, and a coordinated and complete national satellite remote-sensing
application system; to set up a relatively complete satellite telecommunications
and broadcasting system, and remarkably enhance the scale and economic
efficiency of the satellite telecommunications and broadcasting industry; to
establish a satellite navigation and positioning system step by step to meet the
demand, and bring into being China's satellite navigation and positioning
application industry; and to achieve the initial transformation of applied
satellites and satellite application from experimental application type to
operational service type.
To enable astronauts to engage in
extravehicular activities, and achieve spacecraft rendezvous and docking; to
realize the lunar-orbiting probe; and make important and original achievements
in space science research.
Major Tasks
-- To
develop nontoxic, pollution-free, high-performance, low-cost and powerful thrust
carrier rockets of the new generation, eventually increasing the carrying
capacity of near-Earth orbiters to 25 tons, and that of geostationary orbiters
to 14 tons; develop in an overall way the 120-ton thrust liquid-oxygen/kerosene
engine and the 50-ton thrust hydrogen-oxygen engine; and increase the
reliability and adaptability of the present "Long March" carrier
rockets.
-- To start and implement a high-resolution Earth observation
system; develop and launch new-type sun synchronous orbit and
geostationary-orbit meteorological satellites, oceanic satellites, Earth
resources satellites, small satellites for environmental protection and disaster
mitigation monitoring and forecasting; and to start research into key
technologies of new-type remote-sensing satellites, including stereo mapping
satellites. To form an all-weather, 24-hour, multi-spectral,
differential-resolution Earth observation system for stable operation, and
achieve stereoscopy and dynamic monitoring of the land, atmosphere and
sea.
-- To make an overall plan for the development of a satellite
remote-sensing ground system, and an application system; to integrate and
improve the present satellite remote-sensing ground system, establish and
improve a national satellite remote-sensing data center, and set up and improve
supporting facilities for quantitative application, including a remote-sensing
satellite radiation calibration station, and preliminarily materialize the
common sharing of remote-sensing data to serve the public good; to set up a
satellite environmental application institute and a satellite
disaster-mitigation institute, forming several important application systems;
and to make breakthroughs in major satellite remote-sensing application
fields.
-- To develop and launch geostationary orbit telecommunications
satellites and direct TV broadcasting satellites with long operating life, high
reliability and large capacity; and to develop satellite technologies for live
broadcast, broadband multi-media, emergency telecommunications, and
telecommunications and broadcasting for public service. To continuously develop
and improve the service functions of satellite telecommunications and
broadcasting, and increase value-added services in the field of satellite
telecommunications and broadcasting. To actively accelerate the
commercialization of satellite telecommunications and broadcasting, and expand
the industrial scale of telecommunications and broadcasting satellites and
applications.
-- To improve the "Beidou" navigation satellite test
system, and launch and implement the "Beidou" navigation satellite system
project. To develop independently application technologies and products in
applying satellite navigation, positioning and timing service, and set up a
standard positioning service supporting system and popular application terminus
related to satellite navigation and positioning, expanding the application
fields and market.
-- To develop and launch new-technology test
satellites, conduct more spaceflight experiments of new technologies, materials,
apparatus and equipment, enhance the independent research and development level,
and increase product quality and reliability.
-- To develop and launch
the "breeding" satellite, and promote integration of space technology and
agricultural breeding technology and expand the application of space technology
in the field of agricultural science research.
-- To develop scientific
satellites, including space telescope and new-type recoverable satellites; to
conduct basic research in the fields of space astronomy, space physics,
micro-gravity science, and space life science, and make important and original
achievements in these fields; and to strengthen the ability to monitor the space
environment and space debris, and initially set up a space environment
monitoring and warning system.
-- To enable astronauts to engage in
extravehicular operations and conduct experiments on spacecraft rendezvous and
docking; and to carry out research on short-term manned and long-term
autonomously orbiting space laboratories, which is of certain application scale,
and carry out follow-up work of manned spaceflight.
-- To realize
lunar-orbiting probe, make breakthroughs in developing basic technologies for
lunar exploration, and develop and launch China's first lunar probe satellite
"Chang'e I" for lunar science and lunar resources exploration; and to carry out
final-period work for the lunar exploration project.
-- To increase the
comprehensive experimental ability and returns of spacecraft launching sites,
optimize the layout, and enhance the reliability and automation level of the
facilities and equipment of the sites.
-- To advance the technology and capability of TT&C
network, enlarge the coverage rate of the network, and acquire the ability to
satisfy the basic demand for deep-space exploration.
