China: Two more satellites added to BDS, the GPS rival
China has added two more satellites to its BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS), which rivals the US Global Positioning System (GPS). They were launched on a Long March-3B carrier rocket from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center (Sichuan) in the early hours on Monday. They entered a medium earth-orbit more than three hours later and will work with 17 other BDS-3 satellites already in space.
Basic BDS constellation deployment is now complete
With the successful launch, the basic BDS constellation deployment is complete. China plans to provide navigation services with the BDS-3 to the Belt and Road partner countries by this year-end, marking a key step toward a global navigation service. Named after the Chinese term for the Big Dipper, the BeiDou system started serving China in 2000 and the Asia-Pacific region in 2012.
BDS to have over 30 satellites by 2020: Media report
BeiDou system will be the fourth global satellite navigation system after the US GPS system, Russia's GLONASS, and the European Union's Galileo. India too is building its navigational system called the Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS), with an operational name of NAVIC. By around 2020, when the BeiDou system goes global, it will have more than 30 satellites, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.
