Team Infidel
Forum Spin Doctor
Aerospace Daily & Defense Report
May 9, 2008
Pg. 10
BEIJING – An upcoming advanced Chinese Fengyun polar orbit weather satellite will be operated with an advanced U.S. supercomputer like those used at research facilities such as Los Alamos National Laboratories.
The satellite will be used heavily by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), navy and air force, as well as civilian weather outlets. The first mission for the new Fengyun 3 second-generation design is set for launch as early as late May.
The Chinese have developed their own software codes to run in the Silicon Graphics (SGI) supercomputer system, which was purchased early this year. The computing complex is based at the Chinese National Satellite Meteorological Center (NSMC) in Beijing.
The situation illustrates how legal technology transfers between the U.S. and China also can greatly enhance Chinese military capabilities.
“China continues a systematic effort to obtain ... through legal transactions dual-use and military technologies,” according to the Pentagon’s 2008 China Military Power report.
“Many dual-use technologies such as software, integrated circuits, computers, electronics and [security related] information systems are vital for the PLA’s transformation into an information-based network-centric force,” the Pentagon report says.
Rapid dissemination of high resolution weather satellite imagery and data qualifies as one of the most fundamental areas of time-critical information needed for all aspects of military training and other operations.
The new spacecraft, comparable to mid-1990s versions of the U.S. Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration polar orbiters, will use the Altix supercomputer to generate the high-volume weather data.
The first of the new 2.5 ton Fengyun-3 (FY-3) polar orbit weather satellites is planned for launch on a Long March 4B from the Taiyuan launch site south of Beijing. Following the scheduled late May launch, the hope is to support weather forecasting for the Beijing Olympic Games beginning in August, Chinese managers say.
The new 2.4-ton Fengyun 3 class of weather satellites, built by the Shanghai Space Bureau, will carry 11 sensors. The first of the FY-3 series is under final checkout for launch.
Ironically, an older FY-1 polar orbit weather satellite was destroyed by China’s anti-satellite weapons test in January 2007.
The new FY-3 series is designed to zero-in and provide weather data on areas as small as 250 meters across. This capability will be especially important to the Chinese army, just like DMSP data is used by U.S. military forces.
A total of 12 of the Chinese FY-3 polar orbiters are planned for launch through 2020, says Gao Huoshan, general director of the FY-3 development team.
“Compared with the predecessor FY-1 design, Fengyun 3 will provide more meteorological details for temperature, humidity, cloud and radiation, according to Chen Weiqiang, an FY-3 designer.
The Olympics will benefit from the satellite. Precision weather forecasts from FY-3 are to be so detailed that they can cover certain stadiums for certain periods, helping to make and adjust the Olympic schedules. The same capability, made possible by the U.S. supercomputer, will provide new tactical forecast capability to the PLA, which, unlike the Olympics, is an area off-limits for open discussion by the Chinese.
-- Craig Covault
May 9, 2008
Pg. 10
BEIJING – An upcoming advanced Chinese Fengyun polar orbit weather satellite will be operated with an advanced U.S. supercomputer like those used at research facilities such as Los Alamos National Laboratories.
The satellite will be used heavily by the People’s Liberation Army (PLA), navy and air force, as well as civilian weather outlets. The first mission for the new Fengyun 3 second-generation design is set for launch as early as late May.
The Chinese have developed their own software codes to run in the Silicon Graphics (SGI) supercomputer system, which was purchased early this year. The computing complex is based at the Chinese National Satellite Meteorological Center (NSMC) in Beijing.
The situation illustrates how legal technology transfers between the U.S. and China also can greatly enhance Chinese military capabilities.
“China continues a systematic effort to obtain ... through legal transactions dual-use and military technologies,” according to the Pentagon’s 2008 China Military Power report.
“Many dual-use technologies such as software, integrated circuits, computers, electronics and [security related] information systems are vital for the PLA’s transformation into an information-based network-centric force,” the Pentagon report says.
Rapid dissemination of high resolution weather satellite imagery and data qualifies as one of the most fundamental areas of time-critical information needed for all aspects of military training and other operations.
The new spacecraft, comparable to mid-1990s versions of the U.S. Defense Meteorological Satellite Program (DMSP) and National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration polar orbiters, will use the Altix supercomputer to generate the high-volume weather data.
The first of the new 2.5 ton Fengyun-3 (FY-3) polar orbit weather satellites is planned for launch on a Long March 4B from the Taiyuan launch site south of Beijing. Following the scheduled late May launch, the hope is to support weather forecasting for the Beijing Olympic Games beginning in August, Chinese managers say.
The new 2.4-ton Fengyun 3 class of weather satellites, built by the Shanghai Space Bureau, will carry 11 sensors. The first of the FY-3 series is under final checkout for launch.
Ironically, an older FY-1 polar orbit weather satellite was destroyed by China’s anti-satellite weapons test in January 2007.
The new FY-3 series is designed to zero-in and provide weather data on areas as small as 250 meters across. This capability will be especially important to the Chinese army, just like DMSP data is used by U.S. military forces.
A total of 12 of the Chinese FY-3 polar orbiters are planned for launch through 2020, says Gao Huoshan, general director of the FY-3 development team.
“Compared with the predecessor FY-1 design, Fengyun 3 will provide more meteorological details for temperature, humidity, cloud and radiation, according to Chen Weiqiang, an FY-3 designer.
The Olympics will benefit from the satellite. Precision weather forecasts from FY-3 are to be so detailed that they can cover certain stadiums for certain periods, helping to make and adjust the Olympic schedules. The same capability, made possible by the U.S. supercomputer, will provide new tactical forecast capability to the PLA, which, unlike the Olympics, is an area off-limits for open discussion by the Chinese.
-- Craig Covault