By BlueShift | 2025-01-20

China's recent launch of satellites for its Guowang megaconstellation raises concerns about the country's growing militarization of space as Beijing's limited transparency about the mission fuels speculation over its true intent.

The first group of low Earth orbit satellites for a satellite internet constellation launched from the Wenchang Space Launch Site in southern Hainan Province on December 16, according to the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT), the state-owned company that builds Long March rockets.

The group of satellites was launched by a Long March-5B carrier rocket with a Yuanzheng-2 (Expedition-2) upper stage atop the rocket. The satellites have entered the preset orbits, CALT said.

The US Space Force tracked the launch and identified 10 satellites onboard the rocket, SpaceNews reported.

CALT publicly celebrated the launch.

"The satellites entered the predetermined orbit smoothly and the launch mission was a complete success," the company reported on WeChat, a popular Chinese social media site.

The Guowang megaconstellation, part of China's ambitious plan to deploy thousands of satellites, is officially framed as a civilian initiative aimed at improving global internet connectivity.

However, observers warn that such systems could be repurposed for military applications, including surveillance, electronic warfare or anti-satellite operations.

The limited information provided by Chinese authorities heightens concerns about the dual-use nature of these satellites, particularly as China continues to expand its capabilities in space at a rapid pace.

"It is possible that they are being built to do something other than space-based internet, or in addition to that," Victoria Samson, the chief director for Space Security and Stability at the Secure World Foundation, told SpaceNews.

Intelligence gathering purposes?

The Guowang megaconstellation, whose name means "national net," is an ambitious satellite program focused on launching an estimated 13,000 satellites into low Earth orbit.

Beijing aims to compete with the likes of SpaceX's Starlink and Amazon's Project Kuiper to expand high-speed internet connectivity in remote and underserved regions of China and other parts of the world.

While China seeks to bridge its own digital divide, Guowang exemplifies Beijing's ongoing efforts to position itself as a major competitor in the international satellite internet market, challenging the dominance of US-based and led initiatives and potentially expanding its influence in developing countries that may adopt Chinese satellite services.

Notably, the Chinese government has not explicitly tied these satellites to the Guowang project, although SpaceNews reported that leaked mission patches revealed the launch was for SatNet, which oversees Guowang.

The general opacity of China's space programming combined with the satellite network's multi-use capabilities may have significant strategic implications as they add to concerns about Beijing potentially using these satellites for reconnaissance or intelligence gathering purposes.

Concerns over orbital congestion

The Long March-5B is a powerful rocket in China's arsenal with a payload capacity of up to 25,000kg.

The use of such high-powered rockets raises questions about the satellites' size and whether they are large enough to be equipped with payloads for more than just communications data.

Liberation Army Daily, an official Chinese military newspaper, made similar allegations against Starlink in 2022, claiming the Starlink satellites were providing far more than just communications infrastructure to Ukraine in its fight against Russia.

The paper alleged Starlink satellites' payloads included meteorological and navigational payloads to enhance the combat capabilities of its users.

In addition, Beijing exercises strict control over China’s domestic media ecosystem through the so-called Great Firewall. Its deliberate blocking of certain foreign websites and limiting cross-border internet raises questions about what access people and states using Chinese-based broadband would have.

China's planned deployment of thousands of satellites also raises concerns about orbital congestion and the risk of low Earth orbit collisions.

"Now that China is fully launching its two very large constellation systems, it would really behoove the US and Chinese militaries to have fairly solidly established lines of communication in order to ensure spaceflight safety and a shared understanding of what is considered responsible behavior so that we don’t have inadvertent escalation from unplanned close approaches across constellations," Secure World Foundation's Samson told SpaceNews.