Last month, mainland China released high-definition images of Taiwan taken by the 'Jilin-1' satellite, which was regarded as a display of surveillance and deterrence towards Taiwan. Changguang Satellite Technology Co., Ltd. stated that the 'Jilin-1' series of remote sensing satellites can image any area as desired.
According to China Jilin Net, Zhang Xiaolei, Director of the Comprehensive Office at Changguang Satellite, said that unlike the aviation sphere, the 'Jilin-1' series of remote sensing satellites operate in outer space over 500 kilometers above the earth and are capable of taking pictures wherever desired, acquiring high-temporal-resolution and high-spatial-resolution remote sensing images of any location in the world.
The website also published a report on Friday (October 31) stating that 'Performing all-encompassing imaging of Taiwan Province with Jilin-1 is a very easy task.'
The report quoted Jia Hongguang, Deputy General Manager at Changguang Satellite, as saying that the recently published images of parts of Taiwan released via social media platforms were taken by various models in the 'Jilin-1' series, including video satellites, high-resolution satellites, and wide-swath satellites, all operating in space over 500 kilometers above the earth. The disclosed image resolution is generally sub-meter level, meaning streetscapes and layouts in various locations can be precisely identified.
The report quoted Jia Hongguang, Deputy General Manager at Changguang Satellite, as saying that the recently published images of parts of Taiwan released via social media platforms were taken by various models in the 'Jilin-1' series, including video satellites, high-resolution satellites, and wide-swath satellites, all operating in space over 500 kilometers above the earth. The disclosed image resolution is generally sub-meter level, meaning streetscapes and layouts in various locations can be precisely identified.
Jia Hongguang said that 'Jilin-1' is not a lone satellite working independently, but consists of a large constellation of 141 satellites, and nearly 20 more satellites are planned for launch this year to further expand the constellation. These satellites include high-resolution, infrared, wide-swath, and video series, forming a 'camera matrix' scattered throughout space. Each day, they can perform several dozen passes to observe any location in the world.
Jia Hongguang also stated that the maximum resolution of 'Jilin-1' satellites can reach 0.2 meters. At an altitude of 500 kilometers, this resolution is sufficient to even count the number of people in a square.