Dongfanghong () was a
satellite program of the People's Republic of China. The program started in August 1965 as Project 651—a less ambitious successor to the earlier Project 581—with the goal of launching a satellite heavier than both
Sputnik 1
Sputnik 1 (; see § Etymology) was the first artificial Earth satellite. It was launched into an elliptical low Earth orbit by the Soviet Union on 4 October 1957 as part of the Soviet space program. It sent a radio signal back to Earth for t ...
and
Explorer 1
Explorer 1 was the first satellite launched by the United States in 1958 and was part of the U.S. participation in the International Geophysical Year (IGY). The mission followed the first two satellites the previous year; the Soviet Union's ...
into space, and developing all the necessary technologies to do so.
History
In 1958, the
Chinese Academy of Science proposed Project 581 which included a plan to launch a satellite into space before 1 October 1959. The project was troubled due to the country's lack of expertise in the field of rocketry. On 21 January 1959,
Zhang Jingfu, who was in charge in the satellite research program, postponed the project to allow effort to be put into developing more basic technologies, such as
sounding rocket
A sounding rocket or rocketsonde, sometimes called a research rocket or a suborbital rocket, is an instrument-carrying rocket designed to take measurements and perform scientific experiments during its sub-orbital flight. The rockets are used to ...
ry. In December 1964, during the
3rd National People's Congress
The 3rd National People's Congress () was in session from 1964 to 1975. It held only one session in the ten years.
The session was held from December 21, 1964, till January 4, 1965. The Congress elected the state leaders:
*President of the Peop ...
,
Zhao Jiuzhang suggested that the work on satellites be resumed. In August 1968, the Central Special Committee approved
Chinese Academy of Science's plan, which later became Project 651.
In June 1965, the Central Special Committee made the decision to pursue development of a launch vehicle. As per the request of
Commission for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense (COSTIND), the vehicle's first stage and second stage would be based on a
DF-4
The Dong Feng 4 () or DF-4 (also known as the CSS-3) is a first-generation two-stage Chinese intercontinental ballistic missile with liquid fuel (Nitric acid/Unsymmetrical dimethylhydrazine). It was thought to be deployed in limited numbers in ...
long range missile. A solid-fueled third stage was added to the design.
On 24 April 1970, Dong Fang Hong 1 was launched. After reaching orbit, it transmitted a recording of the Chinese song "
The East is Red" for 28 days.
Effect on the name of the Soviet Salyut programme
According to
Boris Chertok's memoirs, when the first Soviet space station,
Salyut 1, was under construction, its designated name was "Zarya" (which means "Dawn", in Russian). When the Soviets realized that the Chinese have a space program with a similar name ("Dongfanghong" was also rendered as ''Zarya'' into Russian), they renamed their space station to "Salyut" ("Firework"), to avoid confusion.
[Boris Chertok, ''Rockets and People, Volume 4: The Moon Race'']
Chapter 14
in the Russian edition.
Dongfanghong 3, 4, 5
Dongfanghong 3, 4 and 5 were series of communication satellites built in 2010s.
See also
*
Space program of China
The space program of the People's Republic of China is directed by the China National Space Administration (CNSA). China's space program has overseen the development and launch of ballistic missiles, thousands of artificial satellites, manne ...
References
{{Chinese satellites
Space program of the People's Republic of China
Satellites of China