China
Infrastructure: Space Infrastructure – TSR 2012
Economy: Space Economy – TSR 2012
Beijing Bottlenecks Pinpointed With Taxi GPS
Researchers at Microsoft Research Asia used GPS data from more than 33,000 Beijing taxicabs over two years, amassing enough data to analyze every road in the city. This data not only showed areas where traffic slowed down, but also showed where journeys started and finished, and how a commuter traveled in between.
2011 – Orbital Launch Reports and Forecasts Snapshot
Orbital launch activity increased by ##% in 2011, rising to ## launches from a total of ## in 2010. Continuing a trend that began in 2004, Russia was the nation that conducted the most launches, with a total of ##. China followed with a total of ## launches, conducting ## more ## than the United States.
2011 – Satellite Overview – Snapshot
Telecommunications technology has made the world a much more intimate place. This is in no small part due to satellites circling the globe providing communications, scientific research, broadcasting, navigation, imagery, and support for national defense efforts. The first satellite, Sputnik, was launched by the Soviet Union in 1957 and served to demonstrate that man-made objects can reach and maintain a simple orbit. This small craft with limited instrumentation did little more than measure the density of the upper atmosphere and provide information on how radio waves propagate through the ionosphere.
2011 – Positioning, Navigation, and Timing Systems
Note: This exhibit is from The Space Report 2012.
2011 – China’s Launch efforts – Snapshot
China’s annual total of ## flights surpassed its previous record of ## launches set in 2010. Additionally, 2011 marked the first year that China conducted more orbital launches than the United States, which performed ## launches in 2011. China’s increased launch rate over the last two years was mainly attributable to launches that placed satellites for China’s Beidou navigation system into orbit.
2011 – Military Satellite Overview Snapshot
The national defense needs of many countries help to drive demand for satellite capacity. Armed forces and international peacekeeping organizations from across the globe lease capacity from various commercial satellite operators or acquire Earth imagery services from commercial companies. Military forces are also building more of their own dedicated satellites due to increased capacity demands and the need for secure connectivity for deployed troops.
2011 – Workforce – Snapshot
The hundreds of thousands of talented individuals working in the global space industry are critical to its overall success and future growth. The trends in space employment and education provide an indicator of the health of the industry, showing growth or decline not only in the current workforce, but also in the likely pool of future qualified individuals.
2011 – Chinese Government Space Budget – Snapshot
Responsibility for Chinese space activities is shared by several agencies, including the China National Space Administration (CNSA) and the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), which operates the country’s human spaceflight program and its launch centers. The structure and organization of the Chinese space program, and the delineation between civil and military aspects, is not transparent. This, along with the involvement of the PLA in operational space aspects, makes obtaining credible data on the Chinese national space budget difficult. One way to estimate Chinese space spending is by comparing China to its peers.