36287 - BEIDOU G1

BEIDOU 3, also known as COMPASS G2, is a Chinese navigation satellite intended to form part of an eventual system, also known as Compass, composed of 35 satellites in geostationary and medium altitude orbits. BEIDOU 3, intended for a geostationary orbit, was launched by a Long March 3C rocket from Xichang at 16:12 UT on 2010 January 16. The Compass system is expected to be operational for Asian-Pacific users by 2012 and to global users by 2020. The positional accuracy for civilian users is expected to be about 10 m.