Dongfanghong (Chinese:东方红;pinyin:Dōngfāng Hóng;lit. 'The East is Red') was asatellite program of the People's Republic of China. The program started in August 1965 asProject 651—a less ambitious successor to the earlier Project 581—with the goal of launching a satellite heavier than bothSputnik 1 andExplorer 1 into space, and developing all the necessary technologies to do so.[1]
In 1958, theChinese Academy of Science proposed Project 581 which included a plan to launch a satellite into space before 1 October 1959. The project was troubled due to the country's lack of expertise in the field of rocketry. On 21 January 1959,Zhang Jingfu, who was in charge in the satellite research program, postponed the project to allow effort to be put into developing more basic technologies, such assounding rocketry. In December 1964, during the3rd National People's Congress,Zhao Jiuzhang suggested that the work on satellites be resumed. In August 1968, the Central Special Committee approvedChinese Academy of Science's plan, which later became Project 651.[1]
In June 1965, the Central Special Committee made the decision to pursue development of a launch vehicle. As per the request ofCommission for Science, Technology and Industry for National Defense (COSTIND), the vehicle's first stage and second stage would be based on aDF-4 long range missile. A solid-fueled third stage was added to the design.[2]
On 24 April 1970, Dong Fang Hong 1 was launched. After reaching orbit, it transmitted a tone-generator rendition of the Chinese song "The East is Red" for 28 days.[1]
According toBoris Chertok's memoirs, when the first Soviet space station,Salyut 1, was under construction, its designated name was "Zarya" (which means "Dawn", in Russian). When the Soviets realized that the Chinese had a space program with a similar name ("Dongfanghong" was also rendered asZarya into Russian), they renamed their space station to "Salyut" ("Firework"), to avoid confusion.[3]
Dongfanghong satellite program later developedsatellite bus to use the base platform and structure for other Chinese satellites and spacecraft.
DFH-2 is the first-generation, spin-stabilized large satellite bus from China, developed in the late 1970s. The first launch was in 1984.[4]
DFH-3 is the second-generation 3-axis stabilized, large satellite bus from China, developed in 1987. It could be used for geosynchronous communications and navigation satellites, and deep space exploration.[5]
DFH-4 is the third-generation, 3-axis stabilized, large satellite bus developed by China.[6] The satellite bus was designed and developed from 1999 to 2005.[7] The maiden flight was launched on 29 October 2006.[8] The satellite bus had first international customer in 2007.[9]
DFH-5 is the fourth-generation, 3-axis stabilized, satellite bus developed by China. First satellite was operational in 2017.[10]