China has officially announced the completion of a major upgrade to its global satellite navigation system, Beidou. This was confirmed by the China Satellite Navigation Office, marking the successful launch of the updated service version.
The upgrade program began in March 2026 and was carried out in several stages. Engineers sequentially installed new software components on individual satellites, carefully testing their performance before bringing them into operation. This approach allowed the modernization to proceed without interrupting the system's operation, ensuring service continuity for users.
Technological breakthrough and new capabilities
During the update, specialists improved several key parameters of Beidou. In particular, the efficiency of inter-satellite communication was increased, the stability of navigation signal reception in complex conditions was improved, and the system's protection against various interference was strengthened.
According to Chinese sources, Beidou has become the first global navigation system in the world to gain the ability for large-scale software updates directly on orbit, followed by an expansion of its functions. This opens new horizons for the development of space infrastructure.
Record positioning accuracy
Currently, the Beidou orbital constellation includes 50 satellites. According to official data, the accuracy of coordinate determination via satellite signals is less than 2 meters, and the global positioning accuracy is less than 10 meters.
When using the high-precision positioning service, the system is capable of providing horizontal accuracy of less than 30 centimeters and vertical accuracy of less than 60 centimeters. Chinese specialists also note an improvement in the PDOP (Position Dilution of Precision) indicator, which assesses the influence of satellite positioning on navigation accuracy. Reducing this indicator allows for increased positioning reliability, especially in regions with complex signal reception conditions.
Development strategy until 2035
In China, the updated Beidou is considered an important foundation for the further development of smart infrastructure, autonomous transport, industrial automation, and other technologies that depend on precise location determination.
According to China's long-term strategy, by 2035, Beidou is expected to transform into a more versatile and intelligent global spatio-temporal service system, providing users worldwide with stable navigation, high-precision positioning, and time synchronization.
