16 June 2020
The team around scientist Pan Jianwei has demonstrated secure quantum communication between two ground stations, with a new record distance of 1,120 km and no intermediate security relays. This is seen as a new step forward toward the practical application of quantum communication. In the latest study published online by the journal Nature, the satellite Micius sent pairs of entangled photons to two ground stations 1,120 km apart; in Delingha in Qinghai Province, and Nanshan near Urumqi in Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.
A secured quantum link between the two ground stations was established with no trusted relays, and the satellite Micius had no information about the secure key.
MORE...
Link to the article abstract in Nature "Entanglement-based secure quantum cryptography over 1,120 kilometres"
RELATED
China's quantum satellite sends hack-proof password 1,120km away

18 June 2020
China's lunar rover Yutu 2 and Chang'e 4 lander were awakened autonomously on 15 June and entered their 19th lunar day of activity on the far side of the Moon. Based on the data obtained on the 17th lunar day, the Yutu-2 science team identified a nearby crater for examination. With a small diameter of about 1.3 meters and a depth of not more than 20 centimeters, the crater was found at about three meters southwest of the current position of the Yutu-2 lunar rover. There are reflective materials in the center of the crater, which is obviously different from the brightness of the surrounding moon soil. Since the two deep-space antennas in Jiamusi and Kashi have been undergoing upgrades for the imminent Tianwen 1 Mars mission, operations with the CE-4 mission have been limited during the last month.
MORE...
RELATED: The third batch of scientific data of Chang'e 4 was released

17 June 2020
Southwest China's Guizhou Province has started using a satellite system that can monitor rice farming from space. The system provides real-time data for planting, according to a report in Science and Technology Daily. As a smart manager of integrated big data, the system provides pictures of paddy fields taken through remote sensing, visual monitoring and other means to help professionals make decisions on planting, said the report. Through real-time data, farmers could monitor crop areas, and detailed figures on local meteorological and planting conditions, which helps them make decisions. The Cengong County of Guizhou is a major rice-growing area with annual yield of around 8 million kg of certified seeds.
MORE...

17 June 2020
China launched on a Long March-2D the new Gaofen-9 03 Earth observation satellite from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China on 17 June at 15:19 h (Beijing Time). Gaofen-9 03 is an optical remote-sensing satellite with a resolution up to the sub-meter level. The satellite will be mainly used for land survey, city planning, land right confirmation, road network design, crop yield estimation and disaster prevention and mitigation, as well as providing information for the construction of the Belt and Road.
Via the same carrier rocket, two other satellites were also sent into space: One of them, developed by Zhejiang University, will be used to test pico-satellite and nano-satellite technologies and the other developed by Beijing-based China HEAD Aerospace Technology Co., will be used to collect global information on ship and flight statuses and the Internet of Things.
MORE...