China is launching 13000 fivegee 5gee satellites to blanket the whole world in 5G radio waves, and also spying and stuffz

China has sparked fresh spying fears over plans for 'megaconstellation' of up to 13,000 satellites operating in low Earth orbit, similar to SpaceX Starlink.

The network is said to be part of the Chinese 5G mobile internet rollout, with the first firms given contracts to begin development work in the city of Chongqing.

Having a satellite internet constellation is considered a top level project for the Chinese government, and could see it provide communications services around the world, not just in China, competing with western operators.

A megaconstellation is made up of hundreds to thousands of satellites that work together to cover all areas of the Earth, most operating a few hundred miles above the surface of the planet, to deliver internet services.

But relations between China and the West are currently in the deep-freeze, thanks to ongoing fury over its cover-up of the emergence of the COVID-19 outbreak.

And any widespread launch of satellites is likely to lead to fears they'll be used to spy on the United States and its allies.

They have unprecedented resolution, as sharp as 5 inches, which would put them on the same level as US-keyhole class spy satellites.

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