China launches a satellite trio for ground radar calibration and measurement

As part of its contribution to the space race, China placed three new satellites into orbit earlier this week. They are joining the more than 10,000 they have already launched so far. The launch took place at 00:10 UTC on October 22 (20:10 on the 21st, local time), when a Long March 6 rocket took off from China's Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. 

While the local media mentioned a single satellite, the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology (SAST) revealed that three satellites were in fact launched. Their names are Tianping-3A (01), B (01), and B (02). Their alleged mission is to calibrate ground radars and perform radar cross-section measurements. According to the same source, 

"It will provide support for ground optical equipment imaging experiments and low-orbit space environment detection and monitoring experiments, as well as offer services for atmospheric space environment measurement and orbit prediction model correction."

Sadly, no additional information regarding these satellites was released. The rocket used for this mission has been in use since 2015 and has had 13 successful launches so far. This year, China attempted no less than 50 orbital launches. Last week, they successfully placed into orbit the Gaofen-12 Earth observation satellite alongside a group of 18 that would be used to observe the Qianfan/Thousand megaconstellation.

At the end of this month, China is expected to send three astronauts to the Tiangong space station. The name of the mission is Shenzhou-19, and we will probably hear more about it in the coming week.

Those who want to know more about the early days of the space race can now grab Asif A. Siddiqi's The Soviet Space Race with Apollo, which is available on Amazon in paperback form at 26% off for the time being ($26 instead of $38).