China To Build Satellite Constellation For Natural Disaster Observation

China has begun the construction of a constellation of 36 low-orbit satellites to gather information for forecasting natural disasters and monitoring urban emergencies.

The project undertaken by the Tianjin Satcom Geohe Technologies Co., Ltd. was inaugurated on Tuesday in China’s spacecraft launch centre of Wenchang, in south China’s Hainan Province.

Guo Jianqiang, president of the tech firm based in north China’s Tianjin Municipality, said the first satellite would be inaugurated in space in June 2022.

All 36 satellites would have been inaugurated by the end of May 2023, to complete the constellation.

The satellite network would provide high-resolution images to help observers identify millimeter-level geological deformations in order to gauge the possibilities of geological disasters, such as landslide, subsidence and collapse, said Guo, also an official with China Geological Survey.

Guo said satellite data combined with geological survey and monitoring data captured by ground sensors in geohazard-prone areas could significantly improve the accuracy and timeliness of natural disaster prediction.