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China Establishes First Earth-Moon Satellite Constellation After Historic Orbital Rescue

Following a launch anomaly, Chinese engineers salvaged two satellites and formed a groundbreaking navigation and communication network in distant retrograde orbit.

Image
World's first three-satellite constellation in the Earth-moon region.
Image of the moon's far side with Earth in the distant background, taken from lunar orbit. The lunar surface appears gray and cratered, while Earth is shown as a small blue-and-white sphere against the blackness of space.
The far side of the moon and distant Earth imaged by the Chang’e-5 T1 mission service module in 2014.

Overview

  • China has successfully established the world’s first three-satellite constellation in distant retrograde orbit (DRO) around the Moon, achieving a major milestone in space exploration.
  • The DRO-A and DRO-B satellites were rescued from a highly elliptical Earth orbit after a March 2024 launch anomaly, using innovative low-energy orbital maneuvers over four months.
  • The constellation demonstrated a record-breaking 1.17 million km space-to-space communication link, enabling autonomous inter-satellite tracking without reliance on ground stations.
  • This mission marks the first spacecraft entry into lunar DRO with just one-fifth of the typical fuel requirement, showcasing advancements in low-cost deep-space operations.
  • The network will support future lunar exploration by providing precise orbit determination, autonomous navigation, and high-precision timing for lunar missions and surface facilities.