At 1730 Hours Hong Kong SAR- Beijing Time 4 July 2026 , China- People’s Republic of China- CNSA –China National Space Administration Successfully launched Chang Zheng – Long March 6A At 17:30 Beijing time on July 4, 2026, China successfully launched the Qianfan Polar Orbiting Satellite Group 13 into its predetermined orbit using a Long March-6A carrier rocket from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. The launch mission was a complete success. This mission marked the 655th flight of the Long March series carrier rockets.
China successfully launched the Qianfan Polar Orbiting Satellite Group 13
At 17:31 on July 4, 2026, my country successfully launched the Qianfan Polar Orbit 13 group of satellites (the 13th batch of 18 Qianfan constellation networking satellites) using a Long March 6A carrier rocket from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. With this launch, the number of Qianfan constellation satellites in orbit has exceeded 200.
I. Core Facts
- Launch time : 17:31 on July 4, 2026.
- Launch site : Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center.
- Launch vehicle : Long March 6A launch vehicle.
- Payload information : Qianfan Polar Orbit 13 Group of satellites, namely the 13th batch of networking satellites of the “Qianfan Constellation” project of Shanghai Yuanxin Satellite Technology Co., Ltd., totaling 18 satellites.
II. Progress of the Qianfan Constellation Construction
- This constellation is part of the “Qianfan Constellation” (also known as “G60 Starlink”) project of Shanghai Yuanxin Satellite Technology Co., Ltd., and consists of low-Earth orbit broadband internet satellites.
- The constellation plan is divided into three phases: Phase 1 deploys 648 satellites to provide regional network coverage; Phase 2 deploys 1,296 satellites to achieve global network coverage; and Phase 3 plans to deploy over 15,000 satellites to provide diversified service integration.
- With this launch, the number of Qianfan constellation satellites in orbit has exceeded 200…
Images and visuals are from their Respectives CMS China Manned Space CNSA-China National Space Administration