China has stunned the world by taking a revolutionary step, as Beijing has carried out its first-ever satellite refuelling mission in space. According to two American satellite tracking companies, the Chinese satellite may have attempted to refuel in orbit for the first time ever, with the Chinese mission being hailed as a revolutionary move in space. The tracking companies reported that the Chinese satellite approached another satellite in space. The SJ-25 satellites came close to the SJ-21 satellite and conducted a potential refueling, an experiment also observed by the American company Selling Shot Aerospace.
If satellite refuelling is confirmed, it will be the world’s first successful in-orbit refueling operation. However, since the docking process of the satellites was monitored from the ground via telescopes, the company could not officially confirm the maneuver. Space News reported on June 6 that China’s Shijian-21 and Shijian-25 satellites were seen approaching each other in geosynchronous orbit at about 22,236 miles (35,786 kilometers) above the equator, and it has now been observed from Earth that they came very close to each other for the first time. According to the tracking company, the two satellites came extremely close on June 14, indicating that they experimentally demonstrated proximity maneuvers, and they may also have conducted docking and undocking tests. The purpose of this test was to refuel while in orbit and to assess the feasibility of expanding the mission’s capabilities, which will help improve the sustainability of space operations. It is worth noting that Shijian-25 was launched in January to demonstrate in-orbit refueling and satellite servicing, while Shijian-21 was launched in 2021 with the objective of moving a defunct satellite out of geosynchronous orbit into a “space graveyard” orbit.
