[antimedia] FW: China's Beidou Satellite Navigation and Positioning System 5-16-07

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China Brief
Volume 7, Issue 10 (May 16, 2007) |
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To Be More Precise: The Beidou Satellite Navigation and Positioning System

By Kevin  <http://jamestown.org/china_brief/analysts.php?authorid=389>
Pollpeter

 <http://jamestown.org/terrorism/news/uploads/1274compass_sat.JPG>
China$B!G(Bs launch of its fifth navigation and positioning satellite in April
2007 reaffirms its commitment to establishing an increasingly capable
satellite navigation and positioning system able to compete with the U.S.
Global Positioning System (GPS). Called Beidou, but sometimes referred to as
the Compass Navigation Satellite System, China$B!G(Bs current system consists of
five satellites that provide regional coverage of China and surrounding
areas.

China began researching satellite navigation and positioning technologies in
the 1960s, and after a hiatus brought on by the Cultural Revolution,
research was restarted in the late 1970s. In 1983, a plan for a satellite
navigation and positioning system under the name "Double Star Rapid
Positioning System" was developed (www.china-spacenews.com, January 7,
2006). Chen Fangyun, an 863 Project founder, later proposed a two-satellite
Radio Determination Satellite Service (RDSS) system that was formally
approved for development in 1994 [1]. The first Beidou satellite was
launched in 2000 with two more satellites launched in 2003, which formed the
first generation of a constellation all in geosynchronous orbit. Two
additional satellites have been launched in 2007.

Technology

The Beidou system is based on the now defunct U.S. Geostar system, which is
dissimilar to GPS. Beidou is a RDSS providing regional coverage that
requires two satellites, a centralized earth station, mobile terminals and a
subscriber station where transmitted data is delivered. In contrast, GPS is
a constellation of 24 satellites, which provides global coverage and does
not require a centralized earth station. The biggest difference in
performance is in accuracies and communications. While GPS can provide
accurate positions of within a few meters, the accuracy of Beidou is 20
meters with the use of calibration points and 100 meters without
calibration.

In addition, unlike GPS, Beidou can also provide two-way communication
between a client$B!G(Bs mobile terminals and headquarters. Customers can
transmit up to 120 characters at a time using Beidou. The primary
application for Beidou is in the transportation industry. Using a RDSS
system, a trucking company can obtain a nationwide inventory of its trucks
and past records of truck routes. RDSS systems can also be used to monitor a
vehicle$B!G(Bs performance or to monitor changes in the vehicle, such as door
locks or acceptable temperature ranges of a refrigerated truck, which can be
used to warn of vehicle theft or malfunction. An emergency function can also
be used to alert clients of an accident or a crime in progress. In areas
with poor coverage, the Beidou signal can be supplemented with GPS.

Applications

China has developed the Beidou system for both military and civilian uses.
In this regard, China is following the lead of the United States in
developing a system that is at its core a military system, but will also
serve a variety of civil and commercial applications. The main concern for
China is that GPS can be turned off or degraded by the United States in the
event of conflict. Consequently, China$B!G(Bs national interests require access
to a satellite navigation and positioning system that is independent of
foreign operation. Ultimately, China wants to develop Beidou such that it is
on par with GPS in both operation and capabilities.

The importance of satellite navigation and positioning for military and
civilian applications has not been lost on the People$B!G(Bs Liberation Army
(PLA) or Chinese commercial interests. The use of GPS for navigation and
precision guided bombing by the U.S. military has been demonstrated by its
indispensability in fighting "informationized" warfare. Precision guided
bombing is especially important in the case of a conflict with Taiwan in
which China would want to avoid indiscriminate bombing so as not to alienate
the Taiwanese public. The PLA also uses the two-way communication function
of Beidou to communicate with units and to monitor their positions
(Jiefangjun Bao, June 4, 2006). Satellite navigation and positioning can
also be used by China$B!G(Bs increasingly capable submarine force that can
receive the signal without surfacing. The PLA Navy$B!G(Bs next generation of
ballistic missile submarines could use Beidou for more precise positioning
data that could be entered into the guidance system of the missiles before
launch. In fact, the first satellite navigation and positioning system,
Transit, was developed for the U.S. Navy for this purpose. Chinese authors
have also explored the use of satellite navigation and positioning for use
in the guidance systems of ballistic missiles [2].

The growing market for GPS applications has also drawn interest in
developing Beidou for commercial use. It has been estimated that the global
GPS market will increase to $22 billion by 2008 (Directions Magazine,
October 2, 2003). Obvious applications include those used in the
transportation industry and individual automobiles, but applications are
also being used by commercial entities for its precision timing. GPS is used
for the synchronization of wireless and telecommunications networks and in
the measurement and monitoring of power transmission systems.

Future Systems

To capitalize on most of these applications, Beidou will have to be improved
upon. Its relatively imprecise positioning and timing data are insufficient
for true precision bombing and accurate navigation and timing. Chinese
authors recognize this and admit that Beidou is unable to satisfy China's
future satellite navigation needs, but defend it as a system built with
little investment that is performing to specification. Chinese authors write
that if China is to meet the technical challenges of the twenty-first
century, it must field a more capable satellite navigation and positioning
system by following the United States' lead and develop a system that
primarily serves military purposes but also remains fully useable by
civilian sectors [3].

To this end, six academics from the China Aerospace Science and Technology
Corporation argued in early 2005 in a document entitled "Suggestions for
Improving Beidou Satellite Navigation Applications," that satellite
navigation and positioning systems required full government support and that
no single organization could overcome insufficient funding no matter how
hard they worked. The document came to the attention of the State Council
and in September 2005, the National Development and Reform Commission and
COSTIND issued the document "A Notice Concerning Increasing the Promotion of
the Relevant Work of Beidou Navigation Applications" which stipulated that
Beidou would be classified as a part of the national basic construction plan
and receive sufficient funding. This document also stated that in order to
promote Beidou applications, the government should begin demonstration
applications of Beidou, support the industrialization of ground terminals,
establish and support stable long-term mechanisms for civilian users, set up
standards for the timing signal of Beidou, conduct overall planning for the
development of component parts and localize the production of receivers [4].


There are conflicting reports about the exact nature of future Beidou
constellations. China's present configuration of five satellites appears to
have been put in place to guarantee service for the Olympics since the first
three satellites may be near the end of their service life
(www.spacechina.com, February 3). Beyond that, Chinese press reports have
stated that the second generation of Beidou will consist of four
geostationary satellites, 12 medium earth orbiting satellites and nine high
earth orbiting satellites and will achieve global coverage by 2010 [5]. More
recent reports have stated that the system will consist of five
geostationary satellites and 30 medium earth orbiting satellites, but do not
give a timetable (Xinhua, November 13, 2006). Another press report states
that China has registered 36 satellite slots with the International
Telecommunications Union for Beidou, of which fourteen will be in
geosynchronous orbits and 22 in medium earth orbits (SatNews Daily, April
16). Regardless of the number of satellites, the second generation Beidou
will only be capable of achieving accuracies of 10 meters, still much less
accurate than GPS.

Conflicting accounts also exist over the exact nature of services to be
offered. According to many press reports, China will offer the Beidou
navigation and positioning services free of charge. Another article,
however, states that China will offer an $B!H(Bopen$B!I(B level of service as well
as a second level of service that will offer $B!H(Bauthorized$B!I(B positioning,
velocity and timing communications service (Xinhua, November 13, 2006). The
biggest difference of the second generation of Beidou satellites will be its
similarity to GPS. China plans to eliminate the centralized earth station,
which could serve as a target for U.S. military operations, and have it
function much like the GPS system with the use of satellites and client
terminals [6]. Eventually China hopes to achieve GPS-like accuracies with
Beidou [7].

China boasts that the Beidou system does have its own advantages. These
include the ability to facilitate communications between subscriber
headquarters and mobile terminals and that it is indigenously made. Beidou
supporters also argue that the potential for the U.S. military to turn off
or degrade the GPS signal means that Chinese customers must depend on a more
reliable form of navigation and positioning services.

Market Potential

Despite these advantages, use of the Beidou system has lagged behind GPS
usage. The Chinese navigation and positioning services market has been
expanding in recent years. In 2002, it was estimated at 3.95 billion yuan
($514 million) and in 2003, it was estimated at 7 billion yuan ($900
million) [8]. These numbers are expected to increase. Less than two percent
of the country$B!G(Bs automobiles, for example, are equipped with a satellite
navigation and positioning system, indicating that the market remains
largely untapped. Chinese market analysts are hopeful for Beidou$B!G(Bs
prospects and estimate that there will be 300,000 Beidou users in 2008 with
a market value of 3.5 billion yuan ($455 million) constituting about 20
percent of the total Chinese market for satellite navigation and positioning
services [9].

It is uncertain if Beidou service providers will be able to meet this
projection, however. GPS receivers in China cost 3,000-6,000 ($390-780)
yuan, while Beidou receivers are a whopping 20,000-30,000 yuan
($2,600-3,900) [10]. The discrepancy in prices is attributed to a low
customer base and the necessity of receivers to provide both location data
and two-way communications [11]. Moreover, considering the eventual demise
of Geostar and the advent of similar systems using GPS and cellular
communications to provide many of the same features as Beidou, it is
uncertain if providing satellite-based two-way communications will be
viable.

Technology Gaps

Moreover, China has yet to master most of the technologies needed to
indigenously develop a satellite navigation and positioning system and must
even concentrate on basic components such as microchips and circuit boards
before it can do so [12]. China$B!G(Bs 200 million Euro ($280 million)
investment in the Galileo satellite navigation and positioning project, for
example, is an implicit recognition on the part of the Chinese government
that the independent development of these technologies will be difficult. In
February 2006, the China Astronautics Association Satellite Application Work
Committee held a $B!H(BChina Beidou Navigation System Application Forum$B!I(B that
advised the government to develop a new generation of navigation and
positioning satellites by replacing the $B!H(BMade in China$B!I(B concept with the
concept of $B!H(BInnovated in China,$B!I(B replacing foreign components with
domestic components (www.spacechina.com, February 10, 2006).

China appears to have far to go before it can bring this goal to reality. A
critical component of navigation and positioning satellites is timing
technology. GPS, for example, uses very precise atomic clocks to perform its
calculations. China, on the other hand, lacks atomic clock technology that
can survive the harsh space environment. To compensate, China has purchased
rubidium atomic clocks from the Swiss company Temex. These clocks are three
times less accurate than the clocks to be used on the Galileo satellites.
According to one source, China has been working on atomic clock technology
since 2000 with limited results, but may close the gap in three to four
years (Space News, June 19, 2006).

Conclusion

China$B!G(Bs development of the Beidou navigation and positioning satellite
system holds the possibility that China will develop a viable competitor to
GPS. Yet, when this may occur is uncertain. China's inability to develop
technologies that are precise enough and the proposed 10-meter accuracy of
the second generation Beidou indicate that it may be some time before it can
match GPS on performance. In addition, because GPS services are so
ubiquitous and the signal free of charge it is not apparent what comparative
advantage Beidou possesses, besides being made in China and free from U.S.
control. Given these hurdles, GPS will likely remain the best satellite
navigation and positioning service for many years to come.

Notes

1. The 863 Program is China's premier high technology research and
development funding source. Shan Bian, $B!H(BChina$B!G(Bs Satellite Navigation
System - The Beidou Navigation and Positioning System [Zhongguo de weixing
daohang xitong - beidou daohang dingwei xitong],$B!I(B China Surveying and
Mapping News [Zhongguo cehui bao], August 17, 2004.
2. See, for example, Kang Guohua, Liu Jianye, Xiong Zhi, and Zhu Yanhua,
"GNSS/SST/SINS Integrated Navigation System for Ballistic Missile
[DaodandandaoGNSS/SST/SINS zuhe daohang xitong yanjiu]," Geomatics and
Information Science of Wuhan University [Wuhan daxue xuebao - xinxi
kexueban], February 2006 p. 176-179.
3. Tong Kai, "China's Progress in Navigation and Positioning Satellite
Systems [Zhongguo daohang dingwei weixing xitong de jinzhan], Aerospace
China [Zhongguo hangtian], August 2002.
4. $B!H(BBeidou Navigation Applications Reach a Critical Stage [Beidou daohang
yingyong jinru guanjian jieduan],$B!I(B www.spacechina.com, February 10, 2006.
5. Zheng Di, "'Beidou System' Commercial Application Layout: China Satellite
Navigation Breakthrough GPS ['Beidou xi$B!G(Bshang yong buzhen$B!'(Bzhongguo weixing
daohang tuwei GPS]," 21st Century Economic Report [21Shiji jingji baodao],
April 25, 2005.
6. Tong Kai, $B!H(BChina$B!G(Bs Progress in Navigation and Positioning Satellite
Systems.
7. Xie Jinshi, $B!H(BSeveral Issues Concerning Our Country$B!G(Bs Satellite
Navigation and Positioning System Construction and Development Process
[Woguo weixing daohang dingwei xitong jianshe yu fazhan guocheng zhong
yingzhuyi de jige wenti], Aerospace China [Zhongguo hangtian], September
2005.
8. Yang Jun and Zhou Ruxin, $B!H(BOur Country$B!G(Bs Satellite Navigation
Application Market Analysis [Wogou weixing daohang yingyong shichang fenxi],
GNSS World of China [Quanqiu dingwei xitong], May 2003, p. 46.
9. Shan Bian, $B!H(BChina$B!G(Bs Satellite Navigation System - The Beidou Navigation
and Positioning System.
10. Shi Lei and Hu Qunfang, $B!H(BBeidou Applications Drives On the Expressway
Early [Beidou yingyong zao ri shiru kuaichedao],$B!I(B China Space News
[Zhongguo hangtian bao], April 22, 2005.
11. $B!H(BBeidou Navigation System Faces the Market$B!G(Bs Final Exam [Beidou
daohang xitong zhimian shichang dakao],$B!I(B China Space News [Zhongguo
hangtian bao], October 1, 2003, p.1.
12. Tong Kai, $B!H(BChina$B!G(Bs Satellite Navigation and Positioning System
[Zhongguode weixing daohang dingwei xitong], Conmilit [Xiandai junshi],
October 2003, p. 9-10.



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