On December 5, 2024, China successfully launched a new batch of satellites as part of its Spacesail project. The satellites were deployed aboard a modified Long March 6 rocket from the Taiyuan launch site in Shanxi province, marking the 550th flight for the Long March series.
This mission delivered the third set of satellites designed to establish the Spacesail constellation, developed by Shanghai Spacecom Satellite Technology (SSST). Earlier reports indicated that SSST secured $933 million to develop a total of 12,000 satellites for this initiative.
The first 18 satellites were launched into low Earth orbit in August 2024, with plans to deploy 104 more in 2025 and over 600 by 2026. By 2027, China aims to have a total of 17,000 satellites in orbit.
The Spacesail project is viewed as a response to SpaceX's Starlink program, which consists of approximately 6,000 satellites.