Launch and Research
Facilities |
Site | Location | Pad | Mobile Tower |
Launcher | First Launch |
Launches | Comment |
Jiuquan | 40.6oN 99.9oE |
3 | 1 (shared) |
CZ-1 CZ-2 CZ-2C CZ-2D CZ-2F FB-1 |
1970 | 29 | China's first launch center. Limited to 57-70 inclination. All recoverable satellites and most science satellites are launched from Jiuquan. A new CZ-2F launch pad and a vertical assembly building for manned flight starts operation since 1999. |
Xichang | 28.25oN 102oE |
2 | 1 | CZ-2E CZ-3 CZ-3A CZ-3B |
1984 | 28 | Used for GTO launch. All GEO commercial satellites are launched from Xichang. It is the only site in China that supports cryogenic stage. |
Taiyuan | 37.5oN 112.6oE |
1 | 0 | CZ-2C/SD CZ-4A CZ-4B |
1988 | 11 | Used for SSO or polar orbit launch. |
Facility | Comment | ||||
Beijing Aerospace Command and Control Center | Responsible for organizing, commanding, dispatching of space flight test tasks, also undertakes the engineering TT&C and management of launch vehicle, spacecraft space flight test task. | ||||
Xi'an Satellite Control Center | It manages China's spacecraft TT&C network which consists of the command and control center, fixed and mobile stations, instrumentation ships and re-entry instrumentation airplanes, and tracks and controls all China's domestic satellites | ||||
Domestic Tracking Station | Tracking stations are all over China, especially in the belt zone from Xinjiang, Shichun to Fujian. Beijing and Nanjing Astronomical Observatory sometimes provide optics orbit observation, orbit calculation and re-entry prediction. | ||||
Overseas Tracking Staion | A tracking station in south Pacific Republic of Kiribati began operation in late 1997 | ||||
Tracking Ship | Name | Commi- sioned |
Displace- ment |
Equipment | Comment |
Yuan Wang 1 | 1979 (?) | 10000+ t | |||
Yuan Wang 2 | 1979 (?) | 10000+ t | |||
Yuan Wang 3 | 1995 | 18000 t | |||
Yuan Wang 4 | 1999 | Former "Xiang Yang Hong 10" |
Facility | Comment |
Wind Tunnels | Subsonic wind tunnels Trans-sonic wind tunnel (1.2m) Supersonic wind tunnel (2.4m) Hpersonic wind tunnel (1.0m) High frequency plasma wind tunnel Shockwave wind tunnel (2.0m) |
Thermal Vacum Chamber | The largest one in Asia. Construction completed in late 1997. |
Engine Testbed | Multi-usage Engine Testbed Large Engine Testbed (59x41x22m) Cryogenic Engine Testbed Simulated High Altitude Testbed |
Full Scale Rocket Vabration Tower | Built for Long March 2E |
Beijing Emulation Center | 11 Test Workshops. Mathmatical system emulation or Half-Real system emulation for rocket development. |
Centrifuge | The largest in Asia. Used for astronaunt training. |
Other facilities | Large Vertical Dynamic Equilibrator Microwave Dark Rooms Full Scale Rocket Test Firing Platform Large Impact Testbed |