China-France Ties: Space authorities to jointly launch their first satellite

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Aerospace has been an important area of bilateral ties between China and France, especially since a partnership agreement was signed more than 20 years ago. And now, the two countries say a jointly-developed oceanography satellite is being tested ahead of a planned launch later this year. CGTN's Zheng Yibing reports.

This is the ground-breaking satellite, the result of an aerospace partnership between China and France that goes back more than two decades.

JEAN-YVES LE GALL PRESIDENT OF CNES, FRENCH SPACE AGENCY "It will be the first time that we observe simultaneously the ocean wave patterns and the winds. So it will provide a lot of data which will be very useful to observing the climate."

WANG LILI CNSA-APPOINTED PROJECT MANAGER "It's a brand new discovery. What we are trying to find out are the causes of waves, and the relationship between wind and waves."

Based in Beijing, the joint program has grown, now with more than 100 Chinese and French scientists who have been working on it for years.

ZHENG YIBING BEIJING "The China-France Oceanic Satellite is being tested in this company. It is scheduled to be launched in the second half of this year, to assist in global oceanographic research, like wind and wave forecasting."

WANG LILI CNSA-APPOINTED PROJECT MANAGER "The satellite is now in the stage of final assembly and test. An electrical performance test has just finished, and a series of large examinations will begin."

When it's ready, the satellite will be sent into orbit 500 kilometers above the earth for three years.

JEAN-YVES LE GALL PRESIDENT OF CNES, FRENCH SPACE AGENCY "This project, France brings its expertise, and most specifically, we bring an instrument and give it to observing the waves."

WANG LILI CNSA-APPOINTED PROJECT MANAGER "We provided hardware in launching, test control, and developing satellite platforms, since we have very mature products."

The project is only a start. An x-ray telescope satellite is being developed by both countries. It's scheduled for launch in 2021 to study gamma-ray bursts.

JEAN-YVES LE GALL PRESIDENT OF CNES, FRENCH SPACE AGENCY "It's clear that today France and China are going to team together in space for a very long time."

WANG LILI CNSA-APPOINTED PROJECT MANAGER "It's very likely for us to deepen cooperation in monitoring atmosphere and environment, especially after the Paris Agreement was signed."

Officials expect joint space exploration efforts to continue between China and France building upon 20 years of cooperation here on earth. ZHENG YIBING, CGTN, BEIJING.