Dongfang Hour - the Chinese Aerospace & Technology Podcast

In this episode, I am joined by former Dongfang Hour co-host Blaine Curcio to explore the rapidly changing landscape of Chinese satellite constellations. We discuss policies, funding, the influence of the US, the role of commercial companies, and the impact on launch.Check out Blaine's newsletter, the China Space Monitor: https://chinaspacemonitor.substack.com/And his LinkedIn where he posts insights on Chinese Space:https://www.linkedin.com/blaine-curcioCheck out Dongfang Hour's YouTube channel, where most of the content is uploaded now: https://www.youtube.com/dongfanghourIf you like what you see and would like to support the channel, please consider joining our small Patreon community at https://patreon.com/dongfanghour

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com).This week, we discuss:3 Chinese Rocket Concepts for Crewed SpaceflightThe growing trend of rideshare launches in ChinaThank you for your attention, and please support us at buymeacoffee.com/dongfanghour !

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com). If you like what you hear, please buy us some coffee at buymeacoffee.com/dongfanghourThis week, we discuss:A review of the Wentian experimental moduleChina's IFC market in 2022

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com).This week, we discuss:Tianbing/Space Pioneer: one of China's Quirkiest Launch CompaniesLaunch Takeaways from CASC's 2020 Blue PaperThank you for your attention, and if you like what you see, support our work at buymeacoffee.com/dongfanghour!

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com).This week, we discuss:A Chinese Version of Relativity Space?Takeaways from China's Space White PaperLunar New Year Greetings from the CSSThank you for your attention, and if you like what you see, support our work at buymeacoffee.com/dongfanghour

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com).If you like what you see, support our work at buymeacoffee.com/dongfanghourThis week, we discuss:Chinese Launch Startups Are Raising an Unprecedented Amount of Funding in 2022 Developments and Trends in Suborbital Launch

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com).If you like what you see, support our work at buymeacoffee.com/dongfanghourThis week, we discuss:Could 2022 be the Year of Massive Chinese Smallsat deployment?The Long March 8A: a New Variant of the Long March 8Thank you for your attention, and please give us a positive rating on your local podcast aggregator! 

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com). If you like what you see, support our work at buymeacoffee.com/dongfanghour This week, we discuss:The Chinese Space Station's Strategy vis-à-vis Space DebrisA Retrospective Look at the Funding Rounds of Chinese Space Startups in 2021Thank you for your kind attention!

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com). If you like what you hear, support our work at buymeacoffee.com/dongfanghour This week, we discuss: China Tests the Module Transfer Capabilities of the CSS Robotic ArmHiStarlink, a New Startup Developing Laser Comms Technology Thank you for your kind attention, and don't forget to leave a comment or a rating on your favorite podcast platform!

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com).If you like what you see, support our work at buymeacoffee.com/dongfanghour This week, we discuss: China Confirms Chang'e 6-8 missionsA Close Encounter between Starlink Satellites & the Chinese Space Station Thank you for your kind attention, and don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up !

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! In this special episode, we wrap up the year by going over 8 events that marked the Chinese space sector in 2021 (very subjective, of course!).If you like what you see, support our work at buymeacoffee.com/dongfanghour In this episode, we discuss the following:China Announces a Lunar Base with RussiaThe Tianwen-1 Mission (and the Zhurong Rover) Reaches MarsChina SatNet: the Chinese Answer to StarlinkSAR Becomes a Hot TopicA Big Year in Launch, but That Could Have Been Even BiggerNew Developments with Coastal Launch SitesPlans for (Sub)orbital Space TourismChina Begins the Construction of the Tiangong Space StationThank you for your kind attention, please give us a thumbs-up!

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com). If you like what you see, support our work at buymeacoffee.com/dongfanghour This week, we discuss the following:Failure of Expace's Kuaizhou-1AImpact on Geespace & other satellite companiesRocket Pi launches micro-gravity platform Sparkle-1 Thank you for your kind attention! Don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source.

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com).If you like what you see, you can support us at www.buymeacoffee.com/dongfanghour :)This week, we discuss:The 2nd Successful Launch of the Ceres-1 RocketDeep Dive into the PayloadsInterview with Galactic Energy Systems Engineer - Liu HongThank you for your attention! Don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source.

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com).If you like what you see, you can support us at our Buy Me a Coffee page 

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com). This week, we focus specifically on launch updates from the CCAF (China Commercial Aerospace Forum):IntroductioniSpace invests massively in space tourismProgress with CASIC's spaceplanesMajor shift in Deep Blue Aerospace's Nebula rocket seriesSpace Trek plans larger rocketsAAEngine goes from engines to rocketsExpace announces an impressive launch cadenceLandspace confirms reusability of the ZQ-2 first stageXingyun-3 satellites should be deployed in 2022Thank you for your kind attention! Don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up !

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com).This week, we discuss:China betting on sea-based launch servicesFirst China-Africa Beidou conferenceRevisiting the concept of US-China space raceAdaspace new round of fundingThank you for your kind attention! Don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up !

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com).This week, we discuss:Shenzhou-13 performs a historic spacewalkCommercial launch startup iSpace sets foot in HainanMars orbiter Tianwen-1 switches to a space sciences orbitThank you for your kind attention! Don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source.

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com) and our website (www.dongfanghour.com).This week, we discuss:IntroductionSpacety Announces a New Constellation in Collaboration with BUPTOrienspace's New co-CEO and RocketsLinkspace Develops a Pump-Fed Engine, the Fengbao-1Thank you for your kind attention. Don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up!

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter and our website.This week, we discuss:Mars Express & Zhurong to perform blind data transmission experiments in November China breaks new launch record, passes 40 launchesLaunch vehicle startup Rocket Pi purchases JZYJ methalox engines for the Darwin-1 rocketTeaser on the 2021 China Satellite conference Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. 

 Hello and welcome to another interviews series episode on the Dongfang Hour! This is the second part of our interview with Molly Silk, released on October 6. Molly is a doctoral researcher in Science, Technology and Innovation Policy at Manchester Institute of Innovation Research. Molly's research focuses on topics such as China's space policy, and cultural, communicative, and cooperative efforts linked to the Chinese space program.In Part 2 of this episode, we focus on an iconic product of Chinese space culture, the sci-fi blockbuster The Wandering Earth (流浪地球), released in 2019. Special thanks to Aurélie Gillet, a collaborator at the Dongfang Hour, who kindly accepted to be the interviewer (Blaine and I admittedly weren't very familiar with the movie...).If you enjoy what you see, don't forget to follow the channel and give us a thumbs-up. Thanks and see you next time! 

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com).This week, we discuss:China tests its most powerful monolithic solid rocket booster (SRB) to dateDiscussion over last week's FOBS test (fractional orbital bombardement system)Space exploration forum and associated updatesThank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up !

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! Also do check out our website (www.dongfanghour.com) as well as our Newsletter, where we cover many more stories every week (newsletter.dongfanghour.com).This week, we discuss:Deep Blue Aerospace performs 100m VTVL hop test with Nebula-M rocketShenzhou 13 docks with the Tianhe core module of the Chinese Space StationLong March 2D Rideshare launch sends 11 satellites to orbitThank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up !

Hello and welcome to another interviews series episode of the Dongfang Hour ! In this episode, we were thrilled to sit down with Molly Silk, a doctoral researcher in Science, Technology and Innovation Policy at Manchester Institute of Innovation Research. Molly's research focuses on topics such as China's space policy, and cultural, communicative and cooperative efforts linked to the Chinese space program.In this episode, we discuss the presence of space references in the life of Chinese people, the interest of commercial companies to manufacture consumer space-themed products, the role of the Chinese government in the popularization of space, and more.If you enjoy what you see, don't forget to follow the channel and give us a thumbs-up. Thanks and see you next time!

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com). This week, we discuss: 4 Future Space Projects at Zhuhai Major Launch Contracts at ZhuhaiSpacecraft and Models Shown in the ExhibitionThe Kuaizhou-1A Rocket Returns to Flight after a year-long absence Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up ! 

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter and Website.This week, we discuss:Tianzhou 3 Docks with the Chinese Space StationThe Hainan Space ClusterCGTN Space DocumentarySpace Pioneer's New Round of FundingThank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. 

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter.This week, we discuss:The Shenzhou 12 crew de-orbits and returns safely to EarthMajor launch update including Space Transportation and OrienspaceMore news on China's Mars UAVThank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source.

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com). This week, we discuss:Chinese smartphones and satellite connectivityRecap on provincial space policiesTwo launches for China's space program Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up ! 

Hello and welcome to another episode (n°50!) of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com). This week, we discuss: Taiwanese rocket company TiSPACE gets launch authorization from Australian authoritiesChina is working on a Mars UAVUpdates on automobile manufacturer Geely's space activities Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up ! 

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com). This week, we discuss:A turbulent week in US-China space relations2 launches in a weekChina's Natural Science Foundation publishes the “Guidelines for the 14th Five-Year Plan first batch of projects”, hints at research on a 1-km long super space station Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up !

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com).This week, we discuss:The growth of Chinese launch companies measured in 2019-2020 workforce increaseSpacety and T4i Announce CollaborationThe second spacewalk (EVA) of the Shenzhou-12 crewThank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up !

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com). Also, many of the links mentioned in the episode are available there.This week, we discuss:A Chinese New Shepard? CAS Space eyes space tourismChinese startup Interspace Explore raises “tens of millions” of RMB, plans commercial cargo spacecraft in 2022Guangzhou adds Satellite Internet to 14th Five-Year PlanThank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up !

 Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover many more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com). This week, we discuss: Space Transportation Completes RMB300M Series A round of funding, reveals more info on hypersonic vehicle roadmapFurther hints that China is working on a lunar landerChina Eastern Begins Live TV In-Flight w/ Panasonic Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up ! 

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover a lot more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com).This week, we discuss:Chinese SAR Wars beginiSpace fails third launch of the solid-fueled Hyperbola-1 rocketDeep Blue Aerospace completes first hop, Expace completes assembly of Kuaizhou 1A and 11Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up !

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover a lot more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com).This week, we discuss:1) iSpace's asymmetrical Hyperbola-3A medium-lift rocket2) First 5G network and LEO broadband satellite integration test performed in Jinan and Beijing3) Mystery around the YF-90 (Long March 9) engine & new round of funding for Space PioneerThank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up !

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover a lot more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com).This week, we discuss:China officially kicks off the construction of the country's first space-based solar power industry base in ChongqingChinese Earth observation data analytics startups participate in Henan disaster relief effort after the recent floodsA new series of Yaogan satellites launched onboard a Long March 2C, with Tianqi-15 as a secondary payload.Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up!

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover a lot more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com).This week, we discuss:China Launches Mysterious Suborbital SpaceplaneFirst Lunar Samples Handed Out to Research InstitutesStatic Fire Test of Deep Blue Aerospace's Nebula-MTencent Begins Space Program Focused on Astronomy(note: for Jean's astrophotography Instagram : jeanhdeville)Hainan Province Publishes “14th Five-Year Plan for the Development of Hainan High-tech Industries”, with Strong Emphasis on SpaceThank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Don't forget to follow us on our website, YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up !

 Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover a lot more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com). This week, we discuss: China's 1st EVA with Tianhe (and 2nd ever Chinese EVA)A Plethora of launches in a Single WeekGuangzhou & Tianjin Add Satellite Internet to their Development Plans Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up! 

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover a lot more stories every week in our Newsletter (newsletter.dongfanghour.com).This week, we discuss:1) China's Zhurong Mars Rover Sends Back Additional Footage2) LandSpace Completes the First Phase of the Its Small and Medium Rocket Factory in Jiaxing(and article by GoTaikonauts! : https://www.thespacereview.com/article/3787/1)3) Deep Blue Aerospace Prepares Static Fire Test for the Nebula M Demonstrator4) Multiple Satellites Launched On-Board Long March 2DThank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up !

 Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup! A kind reminder that we cover a lot more stories every week in the DFH Newsletter (getrevue.co/profile/dongfanghour). This week, we discuss: Massive Design Changes for China's Super Heavy Rocket the Long March 9 (Long Lehao Presentation at the University of Hong-Kong)Assorted Updates on China SatNetSatellite Industry Fund of 50B RMB to be Set Up in Shenzhen Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up ! 

 Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup! This week, we will only cover two stories in more detail, because they are both pretty beastly stories. A kind reminder that we cover a lot more stories every week in the DFH Newsletter (getrevue.co/profile/dongfanghour)! The topics of the week are: Shenzhou-12 launched on-board a Long March 2F, and successfully docks with the Tianhe Core Module China and Russia announce (relatively) detailed roadmap for the ILRS (a.k.a. International Lunar Research Station) Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up ! 

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup! Without further ado, the news update from the week of 7 - 13 June: iSpace unveils details on the Hyperbola-3, which is officially validated and moved to the R&D phaseEmergence Dongfang Space (“Ospace”), yet another launch companyAdditional Pictures from Tianwen-1 (orbiter shot of the lander)Shenzhen Publishes Support for Satellite Manufacturing & Long March 2D LaunchCAS Xi'an to Launch Xiamen-1 SatelliteChina Announces a MEO Broadband Constellation  Do remember to check out also our weekly newsletter which does broader coverage, going over pieces of news that we don't have time to discuss in the weekly podcast (https://www.dongfanghour.com/). Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up! 

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup! Below are the news updates from the week of 31 May - 6 June: Launch of Fengyun-4B Meteorology Satellite Space Pioneer completes a full system hot test of Tianhuo-11 engine CAS Space Begins R&D on the ZK-2 Medium Lift Solid-Fueled Launch VehicleMore details unveiled on the Tianzhou-2 spacecraft's cargo Do remember to check out also our weekly newsletter which does broader coverage, going over pieces of news that we don't have time to discuss in the weekly podcast (https://www.dongfanghour.com/). Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don't forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up!

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup!  Without further ado, the news update from the week of 24 - 30 May:1) Launch of Tianzhou-2 Cargo Mission2) China’s Efforts to ensure a successful deployment of Zhurong on the Martian ground3) Euroconsult Webinar TakeawaysDo remember to check out also our weekly newsletter which does broader coverage, going over pieces of news that we don't have time to discuss in the weekly podcast (https://www.dongfanghour.com/).Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don’t forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up !

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup! Without further ado, please find below the news update from the week of 17 - 23 May: 1) Another Fruitful Week for China’s Space Exploration Program 2) Completion of first batch of tests for the Tianhe Module 3) SASTIND Publishes New Regulations on Smallsat Manufacturing 4) Opinion Piece by Galaxy Space’s Xu Ming on China SatNet Do remember to check out our weekly newsletter which does a broader coverage, going over pieces of news that we don't have time to discuss in the weekly podcast.Thank you for your kind attention, we look forward to seeing you next time. Also, don’t forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source. And please give us a thumbs-up ! ----------------------- Credits for images/visuals: CNSA, CAST, NASA JPL, Thomas Appéré

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup! Without further ado, the news update from the week of 10 - 16 May: 1) Chinese Tianwen-1 Mars Missions attempts Atmospheric Entry and Landing of the Zhurong Rover 2) Chinese Launch Company Galactic Energy signs Collaboration Agreement with China Huateng Group to Develop International Launch Opportunities 3) iSpace Completes a Test of its Single-Layer Common Bulkhead Fuel Tank 4) CGWIC to open an office in Phnom Penh, Cambodia, to promote BeiDou Adoption For a more in-depth coverage of weekly China space news, please subscribe to our new newsletter: http://getrevue.co/profile/dongfanghour ------------------------------------- This has been another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup. If you’ve made it this far, we thank you for your kind attention, and look forward to seeing you next time! Until then, don’t forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source.

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup!  Without further ado, the news update from the week of 3 - 9 May.1) China’s Long March 5B first stage re-enters Earth’s atmosphere and (seemingly) lands in the Indian Ocean10 days or so ago, China launched a Long March 5B rocket to put into orbit the core module of the Chinese Space Station. As mentioned last week, this rocket is a beast: it weighs over 800t at lift-off, can put up to 25t of payload into LEO, and is comparable to some of the largest operational rockets at the moment.Now as there was no upper stage, the core stage delivered the Tianhe module directly to orbit, and then enters successive decaying orbits before re-entering the atmosphere. In the case of this launch, the Long March 5B splashed down in the Indian Ocean, without creating any damage.2) JZYJ Completes Hot Test of Whole EngineLaunch startup JZYJ announced on Thursday 6 May that they had conducted a hot fire test of the fully-assembled Longyun engine. The Longyun engine is a 80t thrust gas generator cycle engine which burns liquid methane and liquid oxygen, and one of the two engines designed by China launch startup Jiuzhou Yunjian, the other one being the Lingyun engine which is a 10t thrust methalox engine (and which was the first engine they developed). This is one of the first test firings of the Longyun engine, with likely many more to come to test different levels of thrust and restarting the rocket engine multiple times, two key features for any VTVL reusable rocket.3) CASSPACE announces B+ Funding RoundOn 6 May CASSPACE announced a ~200M B+ round of funding. The announcement also noted that they have raised around RMB 600M in the past year from CAS, Yuexiu Capital, Zhongxin, Hunan Aviation and Aerospace Fund (湖南航空航天基金), etc. The article mentions that CASSPACE will have their first launch in H2 2021 of a solid-fueled rocket, and that their rocket is part of the CAS’s 13th Five-Year Plan Space Science and Technology Projects.  The rocket will have a payload to SSO of 1.5 tons, and has already completed a variety of tests.A lot of money being put into CASSPACE recently, and indeed, this is not the only second-tier/second-generation launch company to be having a big year. 2021 has seen Tianbing Aerospace and JZYJ also raise more money while reaching various technological milestones, while also seeing new entrants such as “Rocket Group” of Huzhou (火箭派).4) OneSpace “close to” raising a new round of funding for its Linglong solid and liquid fueled rockets, plans to IPO in 2022We heard over the past week in the Chinese media that OneSpace was close to raising new round of funding. This seems to confirm the comeback of the rocket company, which was rumored to be in dire straits after failing the orbital launch attempt of its OSM solid-fueled rocket. As reported in the DFH episode of Feb 1-7, OneSpace had successfully raised a round of funding in September 2020, and successfully performed a suborbital launch of an OS-X (6B) rocket in February 2021. The fact that they may be able to raise another round of funding a mere 7-8 months after the previous round shows the renewed attractiveness of the company. -------------------- This has been another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup. If you’ve made it this far, we thank you for your kind attention, and look forward to seeing you next time! Until then, don’t forget to follow us on YouTube, Twitter, or LinkedIn, or your local podcast source.  

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup! Without further ado, the news update from the week of 26 April - 2 May.1) Chinese Space Station: launch of the core Module Tianhe on-board Launch March 5BOn April 29 2021, China successfully sent the first module of the Chinese Space Station into orbit. The module was a 22.5-ton core module called Tianhe (天和, or “heavenly peace”). It was launched aboard a Long March 5B.Tianhe is rightfully named the core module: it will be the centerpiece of the station which will host living quarters for the taikonauts, a bathroom, a kitchen, it will also be the main control unit (attitude, trajectory control), handles the fuel, power and air management systems. It is designed to host 3 taikonauts, and can hold up to 6 taikonauts during rotations. The Tianhe module will be joined next year by the Mengtian and Wentian experimental modules.In 2024, the Chinese space station will also be joined by a space telescope called Xuntian, which will not be physically connected to the station but will evolve in the vicinity, and docking only for maintenance purposes.2) Creation of a New Space SoE China SatNetMajor news update on Thursday 29 April which first came in the form of a press release from SASAC. The press release announced the creation of a China Satellite Networks Group Company, potentially SatNet for short, and puts that company under the direct administration of SASAC. SatNet is tasked with deploying and operating China’s LEO broadband constellation, widely speculated to be GuoWang. The creation of a SatNet company at this level of the SOE hierarchy is hugely significant. SatNet is, at least in theory, at the same level in the hierarchy as CASC, CASIC, and the big 3 telcos (all of which are also directly controlled by SASAC). If we compare this to the previous arrangement, you had China’s biggest broadband project being done by CASC (Hongyan), and another by CASIC (Hongyun), with both projects involving subsidiary companies with multiple shareholders (for example, Hongyan’s operating company, MacroNet, has shareholders including CASC, China Telecom, and CETC). This would have meant, presumably, that projects like Hongyan would have mostly used the technology of CASC, Hongyun would have used technology for CASIC, and the innovation and competition would have occurred in the long-term, after we find out how these constellations work.  On the other hand, the current situation with SatNet being at the same level as CASC, CASIC, the telcos, etc., means that it should, at least in theory, have a lot more freedom of choice in its sourcing options. 3) Long March 6 launches a Batch of 9 Smallsats into Orbit, many payloads of interestOn April 27th, China launched an impressive launch share mission on-board a Long March 6, putting 9 satellites into orbit. These satellites were:Qilu-1 and Qilu-4. Qilu-1 is a SAR satellite. Qilu-4 on the other hand is a high-resolution panchromatic EO satellite .Foshan-1 is a high res panchromatic EO satellite meant to be a technology verification platform of the Foshan-based Jihua Laboratory.Zhong’an Guotong-1 satellite (also called Hangsheng-1)Guodian Gaoke’s Tianqi-9 IoT satellite, developed by ASES Space.Origin Space’s NEO-1: a technology verification satellite, meant to trial the capture of a small celestial body and various orbital maneuvers.Golden Bauhinia-1-01 and -02 are two remote sensing satellites.Taijing-2 satellite, manufactued by Minospace, will be used primarily for remote sensing, and is the third satellite launched to be based on the MN-50 platform.  ---------------------------------------- Follow us on YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter, as an audio podcast, and on our official website: https://www.dongfanghour.com/

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup! Without further ado, the news update from the week of 19 - 25 April. 1) The 6th China Space Day took place in Nanjing on Saturday April 24Happy China Space Day everyone! This Saturday, China kicked off its 6th China Space Day, an annual celebration promoting China’s space heritage and future space programs. China Space Day is not actually one event, but actually hundreds of events all around the country, with many institutes, universities, and schools organizing space outreach events. This includes conferences, presentations, exhibitions, etc.It’s also worth noting that among all the space events taking place in China, there is one big official event where all the space industry creme-de-la-creme get together, and which last two days. Every year CSD takes place in a different city, and this year it took place in Nanjing, the capital of Jiangsu province. Speeches were delivered by Zhang Kejian (director of the CNSA), Wu Zhenglong (governor or Jiangsu), Han Liming (Secretary of the Nanjing Communist Party).Finally, we saw an announcement of the name of China’s Mars rover, which is currently on-board the Tianwen-1 spacecraft in orbit around Mars, and which is supposed to land sometime in May. Among the ten names that were shortlisted by Chinese netizens, the name Zhurong (祝融) was officially announced by Wu Yanhua, the deputy director of CNSA. Zhurong is a god of fire in Chinese mythology.2) ChinaSat Made Some Big Statements about China’s Constellation PlansChinaSat President Ge Yujin made some very interesting comments at an annual shareholders meeting for the company, as reported by Satellite World (卫星界) on Monday. The most interesting line was a reply to a question about Hongyan, namely a reporter pointing out that Hongyan was originally planned for completion in 2020, and asking for a status update. Mr. Ge replied by pointing out that Hongyan was originally launched in 2018, and that it has since, along with CASIC’s Hongyun, come under national constellation system plan, with Hongyan understood to be undergoing major changes. 3) Spacety and Intane Optics complete China’s first private satellite-ground laser comms experimentTwo Chinese private companies, Spacety (a satellite manufacturer) and Intane Optics (optics subsystem manufacturer) announced in a press release on April 4th that they had achieved China’s first private laser satellite-ground comms. This satellite-ground laser comms experiment was done with the Beihangsat-1, a Spacety cubesat launched in November 2020 which was essentially a test satellite for space-based ADS-B, but it also carried the SG10-1 optical payload manufactured by Intane. The optical ground station was also provided by Intane, based in Nanjing.4) Tianbing Aerospace Announces an Intelligent Rocket Manufacturing Base in SuzhouTianbing Aerospace, aka Space Pioneer, held a signing ceremony this week for an “Intelligent Rocket Manufacturing Base” in Zhangjiagang, Suzhou. The manufacturing base includes a total investment of RMB 4B, and aims at a capacity of 30 liquid rockets and 300 engines per year, with an estimated completion date of 2022. A few other interesting nuggets of info from the article: Tianbing Aerospace plans to launch its first Tianlong-1 liquid carrier rocket by the end of 2021, which, according to the exhibition shown at the signing ceremony, would make Tianbing the first medium-sized liquid-fueled rocket in China. Tianbing also claims to have pre-sold 10 rockets so far, and plans to begin batch manufacturing its rockets by next year. The company plans to IPO before the end of 2023.---------------------------------------- Follow us on YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter (https://twitter.com/DongFangHour), as an audio podcast, and on our official website: https://www.dongfa

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup! Without further ado, the news update from the week of 12 - 18 April. 1) CASIC Institute tests spaceplane propulsion technologyThis week we saw an article published by the S&T Daily on a CASIC institute completing a precooling technology validation test, which is an essential technology for spaceplane propulsion.According to the article, CASIC’s 3rd Academy’s 31st Institute, an institute specialized in aerospace propulsion, has been looking at precooling technology since June 2018. In past conferences, it has shown a technological roadmap where it shows the development of precooling technology over the early mid 2020s, and moving on to 15t and 30t combined-cycle engines which would power 2-stage spaceplane prototypes.The latest test managed to cool air from 1000C down to -150C in 0.01 seconds. Undeniably a significant technical milestone for their “Yunlong” engine (which seems to be the name given to the engine). 2) Wu Weiren, chief-designer of China’s lunar exploration program, discusses China’s “Double One Hundred” goalWu Weiren, the chief-designer of China’s lunar exploration program, was interviewed this week by the official space industry media China Space News, in which he announced that China was aiming for a “Double One Hundred” goal (双百目标). To understand this, there are several points to discuss:Firstly, China likes anniversaries linked to its modern history, especially when its round numbers. Two of the big events are the founding of the CCP (1921), and the PRC (1949). There have been regularly large events to celebrate these dates, typically in 2019 a massive military parade on China’s National Day to celebrate the 70 years of the founding of the PRC.2049 will be the 100th anniversary, and for that China is planning to send scientific probes in what is considered the boundaries of the heliosphere, 100 AU away from the Earth. And 100 AU on the 100th anniversary: thus the “double one hundred”.3) A Report on China’s Aerospace Manufacturing CapabilitiesThis Friday, we saw SCMP publish an article about China’s aviation manufacturing capabilities, with the title telling you everything you need to know--”China’s Aviation Capabilities stuck at ‘low-end’ as military-civil fusion weighs on innovation”. Quite a lot to unpack from this article. First, the SCMP article quotes a report written by the Development Research Center of Shanghai and published on ThePaper.cn, a website owned by the Shanghai Government. I had a decent dig through ThePaper.cn and could not find the report, however it is a massive website that publishes a prodigious amount of news, so it’s possible I simply could not find it.Relying therefore on the SCMP summary, the report was apparently very frank about China’s weaknesses in the aviation and aerospace sectors. In particular, the report cited specific key technologies, such as engines, airborne equipment, and new composite materials. The report also cites China’s airworthiness certification abilities as being weak, and “cannot be fully recognized internationally in the short-term”. The report brings up a handful of issues that we have highlighted in previous episodes of the Dongfang Hour. This includes emphasis on military-civil fusion, an overly large influence of SOEs on the development of innovation-driven sectors, and an “incomplete distribution mechanism” of shared risks and benefits. This has been another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup. We look forward to seeing you next time!---------------------------------------- Follow us on YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter (https://twitter.com/DongFangHour), as an audio podcast, and on our official website: https://www.dongfanghour.com/

Hello and welcome to another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup! Without further ado, the news update from the week of 5 - 11 April. 1）TCL: A New Tech Player in the Chinese Space Industry?This week, we have seen signs hinting that TCL, a Chinese consumer electronics giant, is preparing to invest in the space industry.Last week, they created a company named Moxing Semiconductors, based in Guangzhou, and which would likely focus on space industry integrated circuits. Looking up information on their incorporation in a corporate database, the scope of business includes "GNSS enhancement systems", "satellite remote sensing systems", "integrated satellite applications tech".This is alongside things like "IC design & manufacturing."2) A Few More Details Revealed on China’s Commercial Launch SiteThis week, Zhejiang Province released its 14th Five-Year Plan. Included in the plan was a call to build a commercial spaceport, in Xiangshan, Ningbo, with a total investment of RMB 20B, of which RMB 12B would be invested during the 2021-2025 period. A few things to unpack:First, it is still not 100% clear that the Ningbo Commercial Spaceport is the commercial spaceport referred to in China’s national Five-Year Plan, but the inclusion in the Zhejiang Province FYP seems to make this more likely. The scale of the prospective launch site is impressive, with plans for up to 100 launches per year and economic activity of RMB 100B. The launch site would be 67 sq km, of which 35 would be devoted to launch, and 32 would be devoted to an industrial area supporting the launch site. Second, the location of Ningbo, with a massive port (the world’s 4th busiest by container traffic in 2019), and a long coastline, are beneficial for rocket launches. The port could conceivably make shipping rockets and related equipment to Ningbo via sea simpler, and the seaside location allows for rockets to be launched over the ocean as opposed to over land. 3) New (Pre-A) round of funding of 100M RMB from Aerospace PropulsionChinese commercial startup Aerospace Propulsion (宇航推进) raised 100 million RMB, (approx. 15 million USD) in a new round a funding, with the lead (and unique?) investor being Weifang Hangdong Aerospace Investment Corporation (潍坊航动空天投资). This has been another episode of the Dongfang Hour China Aero/Space News Roundup. If you’ve made it this far, we thank you for your kind attention, and look forward to seeing you next time!  ---------------------------------------- Follow us on YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter (https://twitter.com/DongFangHour), as an audio podcast, and on our official website: https://www.dongfanghour.com/ 

Welcome to episode 8 of the Dongfang Hour! The past several months have seen a significant undertaking by the Secure World Foundation (SWF) and Caelus Foundation to help further bridge the gap between China and the US in the space sector, this being the report Lost Without Translation: Identifying Gaps in U.S. Perceptions of the Chinese Commercial Space Sector. The report was an eye-opening one, the first of its kind, interviewing a variety of stakeholders from the US space ecosystem about their perceptions of China and its space ecosystem. The report was authored by people who had experienced the Chinese space sector firsthand. With the authoring organizations also both being non-profits, the report provides a balanced and fair perspective on the current situation, with limited ulterior motives beyond trying to continue the peaceful and sustainable development of the commercial space sectorOn the Dongfang Hour, we got the chance to sit down with two of the report’s authors, Ian Christiansen of the SWF and Rob Ronci of the Caelus Foundation, to get some deeper perspectives on the report and their research more generally. During our hour-long conversation, we discussed report findings, areas for further research, and even a little bit of rampant speculation. Without wanting to give away too many details, here are some high-level takeaways from our conversation with SWF and Caelus:Information asymmetryPut simply, the Chinese space industry is better-informed about the ongoings of the US than vice versa, by a fair margin. A lot of factors play into this--language barrier (a lot more Chinese people speak English than vice versa), cultural barrier (a lot more Chinese people have spent many years in the United States/the west than vice versa), and also probably human resources (it is relatively less expensive to hire lots of Chinese people to translate and publish information about western activities than vice versa). There is also clearly a large element of “the US is leading in space”, and therefore of course everyone covers US companies. The same is very likely true of Europe and the US--that is, Europeans are better-informed of American space activities than vice-versa, all else equal. Competition is not the same in all sectors Namely, despite the fact that there are approximately 25 Chinese commercial launch companies, the biggest competition today is in the geospatial imaging sector. With China having launched dozens of state-owned EO satellites (Gaofen) over the past several years, and with commercial companies such as CGSTL having launched a couple dozen smaller, but still significant satellites in the past 2-3 years, the competition appears to be coming from multiple sources. There is willingness, and indeed encouragement, by US companies to compete with Chinese companies, but under well-defined termsWhether well-defined terms means “US-led trading systems like the WTO” is not entirely clear, but at any rate, there is the belief on the US side that if this is a “fair fight”, the US companies stand a good chance of out-competing the Chinese companies, at least in some dimensions. There is probably some truth to this--we feel comfortable saying that the US economic system is, all else equal, more conducive to that oft-chided term “disruptive innovation”, simply because the incentive structures are more open and allow for more experimentation with less government interference.Overall, a great interview full of insightful points from our two guests. Moving forward, it seems unlikely that the US-China situation will improve markedly in the short term. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------Follow us on YouTube, LinkedIn, Twitter, as a podcast, and on our official website: https://www.dongfanghour.co