Mumbai:
China, which launched its new `Compass'' navigation
satellite on April 14, has completed its third position-fixing
manoeuvre, sending the satellite into the exact orbit,
the Xi''an Satellite Control Center said.
The
satellite, part of the country''s ambitious `Compass''
navigational system, is expected to provide services
to customers all over China and neighboring countries
by 2008.
China
is expanding the `Compass'' to become a global navigation
and positioning network.
The
"Compass" navigational system is designed
to provide navigation and positioning services in transportation,
meteorology, petroleum prospecting, forest fire monitoring,
disaster forecast, telecommunications and public security,
among others.
`Compass''
system can provide clients with positioning accuracy
within 10 metres, velocity accuracy with 0.2 metre per
second and timing accuracy within 50 nanoseconds.
The
system currently has 35 satellites - five geostationary
Earth orbit (GEO) and 30 medium Earth orbit (MEO) satellites
- earlier reports said.
On February 3, China successfully put a test "Compass"
satellite into orbit, the fourth of such experimental
satellites launched since 2000.
It
said the onboard equipments are functioning well.
Experts
said the `Compass'' navigation experimental system, rivalling
the global positioning system (GPS) of the United States,
is operating well.
China
is among a few countries in the world that are capable
of developing navigation satellite system on its own.
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