Wenchang Satellite Launch Centre
Last updated: 4 April 2008
The PRC will be building its fourth satellite launch centre at Wenchang City, Hainan Province. The programme was officially approved by the PRC government and Central Military Commission (CMC) in 2007 and the launch centre is expected to be completed by 2010~2012. Once operational, it will replace the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre (XSLC) for geosynchronous orbit (GEO) and low-earth orbit (LEO) missions. The centre will be the first PRC spaceport capable of supporting the new generation ChangZheng 5 (CZ-5) heavy-lift space launch vehicle (SLV).
History
For years the PRC has been studying the possibility of building a new satellite launch centre on the country’s southern coast region close to the equator, which gives a payload advantage over the existing inland launch centres. One possible location for the new launch centre is Hainan Island, the southernmost province in the PRC. The idea was first raised in the 1970s but soon abandoned. In the mid-1990s, the local government of Hainan began to actively lobby the central government and space industry to build the country’s new launch centre there, hoping that the project would help develop the province’s economy and tourism.
In 1994, a preliminary research on the feasibility of a new satellite launch centre was initiated and a report on its findings was published in 1996. However, it took the central government, PLA and space industry another decade to evaluate the proposal. Finally in August 2007, the PRC State Council and CMC gave the project go-ahead, and this was announced by the state media in September. Construction of the launch centre will begin in 2008 and the first phase of the construction is expected to be completed by 2009~2010.
Location
Hainan Island is off the southern coast of the PRC, separating the South China Sea from the Gulf of Tongking. It is located southeast of Hanoi, Vietnam, across the Gulf of Tongking. The site for the new launch centre was chosen in Wenchang City on the northeast part of the island. The city covers a region of 2,403 square kilometres (19°20~20°10'N, 108°21'~111°03'E). The city faces oceans in north, east, and south directions, with a total of 206.7km coastline. The main launch complex will be built in an 30 square kilometres area in Dongjiao town and Longlou town.
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| The likely position of the new launch centre in Wenchang, Hainan Province (Source: Chinese Internet) |
Facilities
The US$500 million project will include a launch site, a tourist centre and an industrial park. The first phase of the development project will occupy 16km2 of land, and the second phase will occupy 30km2. The launch site will have two launch pads and potentially a third in the future, a launch vehicle assembly area, and a mission command and control centre (MCCC).
The new launch centre offers a number of advantages over the three existing launch centres:
Only 19 degrees north of equator, the new launch centre’s proximity to the equator allows a substantial increase of payload mass, necessary for the future large GEO communications satellite, space station modules, and deep space exploration probe launch missions. For example, compared to the existing Xichang launch centre, a GEO satellite launched from Wenchang will be able to extend its service life by three years as a result of the fuel saved from the shorter manoeuvre from the transit orbit to GEO. This offers a distinctive advantage in the international commercial launch market.
Secondly, the new launch centre is surrounded by sea in three directions, which helps avoid debris of the used launch vehicles falling into residential areas. In contrast, a launch vehicle from Xichang has several dense residential areas in its path.
Thirdly, all three existing inland launch centres rely on the railway to transport launch vehicles from the factory to the launch site. The many tunnels on the current railway lines will not be able to allow the 5m-diameter CZ-5 launch vehicle to pass. The Wenchang centre will be the only launch centre capable of accepting the CZ-5 launch vehicles by sealift from its factory located in Tianjing on the Chinese eastern coast.
The PRC is planning to close the current satellite launch centre at Xichang once the new Wenchang launch centre is fully functional. Staffs currently working at Xichang will be gradually relocate to Wenchang. In the future Xichang will only serve as an backup launch site for emergency.
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