China launches nine more satellites for its Guowang internet megaconstellation
A Long March 12 rocket placed the 27th group of low-orbit internet satellites into orbit, bringing the total number of Guowang satellites launched to 386.
Graphic: TERRA WORLD NEWS (own graphic based on the sources listed)
China launched a new batch of satellites for its Guowang internet constellation on Saturday, Oct. 10. A Long March 12 rocket lifted off at 3:27 a.m. Beijing time from the Wenchang commercial launch site on Hainan island and placed its payload into the planned orbits, state broadcaster CGTN reported. According to the specialist site China in Space, the rocket carried nine satellites of about 695 kilograms each, built by an institute of the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
It was the 27th Guowang launch, raising the number of satellites launched from 377 to 386, of which 222 are in orbit and moving toward their operational orbits. The operator is state-owned China Satellite Network Group, which plans to offer internet services first in China and later worldwide.
China in Space said the 2026 target was 310 satellites, with 3,600 a year planned from 2028 and up to 13,000 in orbit in the 2030s. The project is widely seen as China's answer to SpaceX's Starlink. The mission was the ninth flight of the Long March 12 and China's 71st launch of the year.