BeiDou4

The goal of these 6 trackables, BeiDou1 Through BeiDou6, is to achieve a worldwide distribution, as far as possible apart from one another.  I’ll try to keep them plotted together on one map so you can see where they all are.  Please help these to travel widely.  I am launching them at a geocaching event in Shanghai in November of 2013.  BeiDou6 was launched in March of 2015.  I hope they go home to many countries.

This series of Trackables, BeiDou1 Through BeiDou6, is launched in honor of the Chinese Global Positioning System, known as the BeiDou Navigation System (北斗卫星导航系统).  . It consists of two separate satellite constellations – a limited test system that has been operating since 2000, and a full-scale global navigation system that is currently under construction.

The first BeiDou system, officially called the BeiDou Satellite Navigation Experimental System and also known as BeiDou-1, consists of three satellites and offers limited coverage and applications. It has been offering navigation services, mainly for customers in China and neighboring regions, since 2000.

The second generation of the system, officially called the BeiDou Satellite Navigation System (BDS) and also known as COMPASS or BeiDou-2, will be a global satellite navigation system consisting of 35 satellites, and is under construction.  It became operational in China in December 2011, with 10 satellites in use, and began offering services to customers in the Asia Pacific region in December 2012.   It is planned to begin serving global customers upon its completion in 2020.

[Portions courtesy Wikipedia]

The constellation:

BeiDou1 BeiDou2 BeiDou3 BeiDou4 BeiDou5 BeiDou6