China’s next-gen BeiDou satellite system to ramp up rivalry with US-based GPS

China expects to launch the next generation of its BeiDou Navigation Satellite System by 2035, following a series of upgrades – a development that would help it vie with the US-backed Global Positioning System (GPS) for international clients.

BeiDou’s developers anticipate “breakthroughs” in key technology next year, state media reported, citing a government-organised seminar on Thursday to mark the 30th anniversary of the home-grown navigation system’s conception.

Three pilot satellites could be sent into space by around 2027, followed by a “system networking satellite” launch around 2029. And by 2035, the creation of the next iteration of BeiDou should be complete.

“China will build a next-generation BeiDou system with more advanced technology, more powerful functions and better services,” Xinhua reported.

BeiDou’s name comes from the Big Dipper asterism – a set of stars historically used in navigation to locate the North Star. The current generation, BeiDou-3, became fully operational in 2020. And plans for the next generation were released at the seminar.

China has been developing BeiDou to vie for a piece of the lucrative satellite communications market with the 31-year-old GPS. Both compete with Europe’s Galileo, Glonass from Russia and the Quasi-Zenith Satellite System from Japan for users.