A major Chinese state defense contractor is preparing to launch its first satellite into very low Earth orbit. The first satellite for the Very Low Earth Orbit (VLEO) satellite group will be launched in September, China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC) told Chinese state media in early March.

VLEO satellites orbit at altitudes between 150 and 300 kilometers, much lower than most satellites. These low altitudes require propulsion to counteract the relatively rapid disruption of the satellite’s orbit due to much higher atmospheric drag, but offer economic incentives and performance in the form of reduced power requirements for data transmission, lower data transmission latency, lower solar generation requirements. and higher resolution observations.

The first CASIC VLEO satellite will aim to demonstrate and test key technologies, including “ultra-low orbital flight technology”, high-resolution ground imaging technology, and onboard intelligent processing and data transmission technology. reported.

Details such as the planned lifetime of the satellites, the size of the constellation, and the launch frequency were not disclosed. CASIC is a subsidiary of state-owned space and defense contractor CASC, China’s leading space contractor responsible for the vast majority of the country’s civil and military space efforts. However, the conglomerate has a role to play and in recent years has sought to expand its footprint with a series of plans it calls commercial plans for the broadband and narrowband LEO constellations and Kuaizhou series solid-state rockets.

CASIC has a satellite and rocket manufacturing base in Wuhan and is also working on Tengun reusable spaceplanes. Through launch operator Expace, CASIC plans to launch a total of 8-10 launches of Kuaizhou-1A and larger Kuaizhou-11 rockets in 2023.

In recent years, VLEO concepts have emerged in the USA and Europe. US firms Skeyon, Earth Observant, and Albedo have raised funds to develop VLEO satellites, while the European Union has funded the Discoverer research program to investigate placing Earth observation satellites at much lower altitudes than usual.

According to Science and Technology Daily, China’s 14th edition covering the period 2021-2025.

In a possibly related development, the Tianxing-1 (NORAD 52902) satellite, launched on the Kuaizhou-1A rocket in June 2022, re-entered the atmosphere on March 29, according to US Space Force space tracking data. The satellite maintained an orbit of about 300 kilometers before its orbit decreased steadily over the past month. The satellite was developed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences as part of the 14th Five-Year Plan. It also performed data acquisition and opto-electronic payloads for CASIC as part of technical validation tests.