For most people, GPS has become the name of the global satellite navigation system. However, GPS actually refers to the navigation system developed by the United States since the 1970s.
In addition to the GPS system in the United States, Russia and Europe all have their own satellite navigation systems. my country also proposed to develop its own satellite navigation system in the 1980s, which is what we know now Beidou satellite navigation system.
This is another proof that our country has broken the monopoly of the United States, and it also means that our country’s satellite navigation technology has made great progress.
In fact, until the end of 2017, when the Beidou system entered the global networking stage, Americans still found it incredible because they did not believe that China could achieve such great achievements in a short period of time on its own. .
As early as the 1970s, the United States began to develop a new generation of satellite navigation systems.
In the end, it took the United States 20 years and 20 billion U.S. dollars to build the GPS navigation system we know well, which can perform all-round real-time three-dimensional navigation and navigation on land, sea, and air. Positioning, in 1994, this technology was not unadvanced.
For the United States, this system has protected the national security of the United States and has made "significant contributions" in the United States' foreign wars.
More importantly, this system is a "technical monopoly" in the United States. For a long time in the past, many countries relied on GPS systems for transportation, communications or power dispatching, including our country.
As we all know, such a key system relies on foreign countries, which obviously poses a major threat to our country’s national security. Therefore, as early as the 1980s, our country had begun to explore the road of independent research and development of satellite navigation systems. .
In 2000, my country built the Beidou-1 system as planned, which can provide Chinese users with positioning and other functions, and is mainly used in fields such as precision agriculture, transportation, and military and public security.
However, at that time, our country's passive system was not yet mature and its parameters were relatively backward. Therefore, our country joined the European Galileo navigation system project in 2004.
At that time, the design accuracy of the Galileo system was higher than that of GPS and it was also compatible with GPS. It was hailed as the most powerful challenger to GPS. In order to join the plan, we also promised to invest 230 million euros. funds.
However, in 2005, due to the pro-American regime in Europe coming to power, China was excluded from the Galileo project. For this reason, our country announced in 2006 that it would develop its own global navigation and satellite system.
After 6 years of hard work, our country has officially completed the Beidou-2 system.
This time, we can already provide services to users in the Asia-Pacific region, and the Beidou system surpasses the Galileo system in terms of accuracy and technology, which can be regarded as a relief for our country.
After the completion of Beidou-2, countries such as Pakistan, Laos, and Thailand also began to use my country's Beidou system, which provided a lot of useful help for the subsequent construction of the Beidou system.
In addition, the Beidou navigation system has also entered the civilian promotion stage. Domestic mobile phone manufacturers and Samsung and other manufacturers have begun to launch products equipped with the Beidou navigation system.
However, at this time, our country's Beidou navigation system is still inferior to the United States' GPS system, so our country is still continuing to build the Beidou-3 system.
In 2018, the People's Daily published an article stating that since the successful launch of Beidou-3's "one rocket and two stars" at the end of 2017, the Beidou system has entered the stage of global networking.
In November of that year, my country's Xichang Satellite Launch Base successfully launched my country's 41st Beidou navigation satellite with a loud bang. This is the 17th Beidou-3 networking satellite of my country, also known as " The Strongest Beidou".
Xichang Satellite Launch Base has the reputation of "Beidou Port". In the past 30 years from 1994 to 2020, Xichang Satellite Launch Base has undertaken 44 Beidou launch missions, and the mission has been completed The rate reached an astonishing 100.
This time, the "strongest Beidou" launched in Xichang is the GEO orbiting satellite. Its nickname is "Jixing", which is derived from the homophony of GEO orbiting satellite. This is a single-star signal coverage. Satellites with a wide range, as long as three, can cover most areas of the earth except the North and South Pole.
Moreover, because the GEO satellite has a higher orbit, its anti-shadowing performance is very good, especially in cities, canyons and other areas. It has obvious advantages.
Yang Changfeng, chief designer of my country's Beidou satellite navigation system, introduced "Jixing" in this way. On the basis of "full compatibility with Beidou-2 services, its capabilities have been greatly improved" and it can also comply with international civil aviation standards. Achieve higher precision navigation function. Moreover, the success of the "lucky star" "goes to heaven" has epoch-making significance.
First of all, Jixing can achieve dynamic decimeter-level and post-event centimeter-level positioning services, which will provide powerful help for autonomous driving or ship berthing.
As we all know, if a car is to be driven automatically, the computer system controlling the car must know exactly where the car is driving. Otherwise, the car may drive the wrong way, turn the wrong corner, or even drive unexpectedly. Get on the sidewalk.
If you rely solely on satellite navigation and positioning, the position of the car obtained by the computer may have an error of several meters or even more than ten meters. Even relying on ground reference stations may not necessarily achieve full coverage.
With the "Jixing", only the existing Beidou navigation satellite ground station can be used as a reference to obtain the navigation errors in various places and provide more accurate positioning services, making autonomous driving more convenient. Got "possible".
Secondly, "lucky stars" can also make civil aviation signals more reliable.
The civil aviation system requires accurate and reliable navigation signal services. If the navigation signal deviates or disappears during takeoff and landing, it may cause serious consequences of "aircraft crash and fatality".
Now, "Jixing" can provide satellite-based enhanced signals that comply with ICAO standards to improve the positioning accuracy and integrity of satellite navigation. Even if there is a problem with the navigation signal, "Jixing" can still operate within 6 Notification of switching signal within seconds.
Previously, only developed countries such as the United States could provide this service, but now our country's "Jixing" can also provide this service, which means a major progress in our country's technology and also means the international status of the Beidou navigation system. huge improvement.
Finally, with the "lucky star", the short message function of my country's Beidou system has also made great progress.
Now, the short message communication function of the Beidou system can send more than a thousand characters at a time, and can also send pictures, and can also be interconnected with mobile phone numbers, which greatly improves the convenience of the function.
Since then, the construction of Beidou-3 has progressed smoothly. In June 2020, Beidou-3 completed the launch of all networking satellites half a year ahead of schedule.
In July of the same year, the Beidou-3 global satellite navigation system was officially launched. Since then, the Beidou system has entered the era of global service.
It is certainly a very happy thing for our country's astronauts to have achieved such great achievements, but for the United States, this is not a "happy thing".
Many Americans are unwilling to believe that China has achieved such great achievements in a short period of time solely through its own efforts.
As the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs Hua Chunying said, this kind of groundless and deliberately slanderous remarks by the United States are hindering exchanges and cooperation between China and the United States, and also violate the expectations of the two peoples.
More importantly, this seems to show some kind of "little chicken intestines" in the United States. After all, the United States can develop its own system, why can't the Chinese?
Now, Beidou Navigation System has opened its own era of "global service".
Maybe everyone thinks that the Beidou navigation system is far away from us and only plays a role in "national security", but in fact, with the completion of the Beidou-3 system, the Beidou navigation system has already entered our All aspects of life.
On the one hand, the Beidou system has become the "standard configuration" of smartphones, smart watches and other devices. The Beidou ground enhancement function has also been applied to the navigation system of smartphones, enabling precise positioning at the 1-meter level. , which can provide users with “lane-level” navigation services.
On the other hand, the Beidou system is being integrated into all walks of life across the country. In addition to infrastructure such as transportation, electricity, and communications, the Beidou system is also used in agriculture, forestry, animal husbandry, fishery and other industries.
Even in our "anti-epidemic" struggle that has lasted for more than two years, the precise positioning service of the Beidou system has also provided many conveniences for our country to centrally deploy anti-epidemic materials.
Globally, the Beidou system is providing services to more than half of the countries and regions in the world. The precision agriculture and smart port solutions of the vast number of countries in Asia, Africa and Latin America are inseparable from the Beidou system, and even land confirmation is inseparable. Everyone can get help from the Beidou system.
Moreover, our country has always adhered to the development concept of "open cooperation and full sharing of resources" and cooperated with various countries around the world in satellite navigation.
For example, in 2021, our country also signed an agreement with Russia on Sino-Russian satellite navigation cooperation. For example, our country has also established normalized cooperation mechanisms with Argentina, South Africa and other countries.
For another example, a number of international standards supporting the Beidou system have been released, which means that the Beidou system has gradually been integrated into international standards and can provide services to more countries in the future.
In addition, our country has submitted a "Letter of Commitment" to the International Civil Aviation Organization, promising to provide "basic navigation services" to global civil aviation users free of charge, which reflects our country's responsibility as a major country in satellite navigation systems. Sense of responsibility.
In the future, the Beidou system will further improve the stability of system operation, improve the reliability of the constellation, and continue to serve the world and benefit mankind. By then, the United States may see more "unbelievable" things, but we still hope that the United States can seek truth from facts and recognize our achievements.
Guangming.com, "The 41st Beidou navigation satellite was launched. Why is it called the "most powerful Beidou"? "
Huashang Daily, "Beidou breaks GPS monopoly"
Beidou Satellite Navigation System official website, "Each Beidou satellite has its own function! "International Voice | Chief Designer Yang Changfeng: Beidou System Entering a New Era of Global Services"