The Xi'an Satellite Monitor and Control Center (XSCC; ), also known as Base 26, is the primary

satellite A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioi ...

telemetry, tracking, and control facility of the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

. Located in the Beilin District of

Xi'an Xi'an ( , ; ; Chinese: ), frequently spelled as Xian and also known by other names, is the capital of Shaanxi Province. A sub-provincial city on the Guanzhong Plain, the city is the third most populous city in Western China, after Chongqi ...

Shaanxi Province Shaanxi (alternatively Shensi, see § Name) is a landlocked province of China. Officially part of Northwest China, it borders the province-level divisions of Shanxi (NE, E), Henan (E), Hubei (SE), Chongqing (S), Sichuan (SW), Gansu (W), Ni ...

, XSCC is subordinate to the Satellite Launch, Tracking, and Control Department of the

People's Liberation Army Strategic Support Force The People's Liberation Army Strategic Support Force (PLASSF; ) is the space, cyber, political, and electronic warfare force and the 5th branch of the People's Liberation Army (PLA).

(PLASSF).

History

The history of the Xi'an Satellite Monitor and Control Center began in 1967 with the founding of the Satellite Ground Tracking Department () in Qiaonan sub-district, Shaanxi on

Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center (JSLC; also known as Shuangchengzi Missile Test Center; Launch Complex B2; formally Northwest Comprehensive Missile Testing Facility (); Base 20; 63600 Unit) is a Chinese space vehicle launch facility ( sp ...

(JSLC, Base 20). On 24 April 1970, when the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched its first

artificial satellite A satellite or artificial satellite is an object intentionally placed into orbit in outer space. Except for passive satellites, most satellites have an electricity generation system for equipment on board, such as solar panels or radioisoto ...

Dong Fang Hong 1 ''Dong Fang Hong 1'' (), in the western world also known as China 1 or PRC 1, was the first space satellite of the People's Republic of China (PRC), launched successfully on 24 April 1970 as part of the PRC's Dongfanghong space satellite prog ...

, into orbit from JSLC, The Satellite Ground Tracking Department provided the "three grasps" (satellite tracking, telemetry, and control, TT&C) using the newly developed 7010 and Type 110 radars. Upgraded to a center in September 1975, as the PRC increased its testing of satellites, ICBMs, and SLBMs in the early 1980s and the TT&C network grew. The organization evolved into its current form in 1987, moving to

from

Weinan Weinan () is a prefecture-level city in the east central Shaanxi province, China. The city lies on the lower section of the Wei River confluence into the Yellow River, about east of the provincial capital Xi'an, and borders the provinces of S ...

. By the 1980s, China's TT&C network () consisted of two

command and control Command and control (abbr. C2) is a "set of organizational and technical attributes and processes ... hatemploys human, physical, and information resources to solve problems and accomplish missions" to achieve the goals of an organization or en ...

(C2) centers: the Xi'an Satellite Control (XSCC) and Beijing Aerospace Flight Control Center (BACC), supported by six ground stations: Changchun, Lingshui, Kashgar, Nanning, Weinan,

Xiamen Xiamen ( , ; ), also known as Amoy (, from Hokkien pronunciation ), is a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, People's Republic of China, beside the Taiwan Strait. It is divided into six districts: Huli, Siming, Jimei, Tong'an ...

, and a series of Yuan Wang-class tracking ships. The facility was established in

as the "Satellite Survey Department" in 1967, and relocated to

in 1987. Today, the XSCC comprises a mission control station in Xi'an and a set of tracking arrays located outside the city on a mountain plateau. The tracking station is equipped with

antenna farm Antenna farm or satellite dish farm or just dish farm are terms used to describe an area dedicated to television or radio telecommunications transmitting or receiving antenna equipment, such as C, Ku or Ka band satellite dish antennas, UHF/V ...

s, masts, and communications dishes, while the mission control station is equipped with television screens,

console Console may refer to: Computing and video games * System console, a physical device to operate a computer ** Virtual console, a user interface for multiple computer consoles on one device ** Command-line interface, a method of interacting with ...

s, plotters, and high-speed computers that allow technicians to trace the orbital paths of all Chinese satellites in orbit.

Organization

Xi'an Satellite Monitor and Control Center is composed of the following, subordinate ground stations: * Changchun Station * Kashgar Station * Lingshui Station * Menghai Station * Minxi Station * Nanning Station * Qingdao Station * Xiamen Station * Weinan Station * Xiangxi Station * Zhanyi Station The Changchun Satellite Tracking & Control Station (), located outside of Changchun,

Jilin Province Jilin (; alternately romanized as Kirin or Chilin) is one of the three provinces of Northeast China. Its capital and largest city is Changchun. Jilin borders North Korea ( Rasŏn, North Hamgyong, Ryanggang and Chagang) and Russia (Prim ...

, was established in 1968 and operates with the Military Unit Cover Designator (MUCD) Unit 63759. Outfitted with 154-IIB

monopulse radar Monopulse radar is a radar system that uses additional encoding of the radio signal to provide accurate directional information. The name refers to its ability to extract range and direction from a single signal pulse. Monopulse radar avoids prob ...

, may be a part of the

Chinese Deep Space Network The Chinese Deep Space Network (CDSN) is a network of large antennas and communication facilities that are used for the interplanetary spacecraft missions of China. It is managed by the China Satellite Launch and Tracking Control Center General ...

under the Jiamusi Satellite Tracking & Control Station. The Kashgar Station, MUCD 63783, in the west of

Xinjiang Autonomous Region Xinjiang, SASM/GNC: ''Xinjang''; zh, c=, p=Xīnjiāng; formerly romanized as Sinkiang (, ), officially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region (XUAR), is an autonomous region of the People's Republic of China (PRC), located in the northwest ...

was established in 1968 under Base 26 until Xi Jinping's 2016 military reforms when the organization was moved under the newly created PLASSF. The Lingshui Control Station on

Hainan Hainan (, ; ) is the smallest and southernmost province of the People's Republic of China (PRC), consisting of various islands in the South China Sea. , the largest and most populous island in China,The island of Taiwan, which is slightly l ...

was established in April 2008 and finds itself responsible for the tracking of Shijian satellites. A 40 meter

radome A radome (a portmanteau of radar and dome) is a structural, weatherproof enclosure that protects a radar antenna. The radome is constructed of material transparent to radio waves. Radomes protect the antenna from weather and conceal antenna e ...

was built in 2012.

History

Organization

See also

References

Further reading