China’s space technology was deeply applied in the country’s various industries in 2022, forming an all-weather remote sensing monitoring system for infrastructure including all sea areas and islands under its jurisdiction, the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) said on Wednesday during the release of the Blue Book of China Aerospace Science and Technology Activities. 

China has developed a series of satellites for ocean color, marine dynamics and surveillance, which have formed the capability of continuously and frequently covering observations of global waters, and have achieved remarkable results in applications in areas including island management, marine resource investigation and supervision, marine environmental monitoring and forecasting.

In 2022, China's marine satellites continued to carry out remote sensing inspections of key islands and reefs. In particular, they strengthened monitoring of the waters around Huangyan Island, Diaoyu Island and all the islands of Xisha, Zhongsha and Nansha Islands, providing important data support for the management of sea areas and comprehensive management of the islands.

China's marine satellites also continued to carry out remote sensing detection of key islands and reefs in 2022, in particular strengthening the monitoring of the waters around Huangyan Island, Diaoyu Island, as well as the Xisha, Zhongsha and Nansha Islands, providing a significant basis for the utilization of waters and coastal islands, the report noted.

In addition, China’s marine satellites are also carrying out global ocean observation and forecasting, providing services for global marine dynamic environment monitoring, marine forecasting and disaster monitoring, as well as remote sensing monitoring of global sea level changes.

China's marine satellites have successfully provided important data and technical support for monitoring and warnings for fires, typhoons and storm surges at home and abroad.

Lin Mingsen, director of the National Satellite Ocean Application Service, said China will further strengthen the integration of artificial intelligence, big data and other technologies with satellite remote sensing systems, so as to provide high-quality marine satellite public service products and promote the level of marine management in China.

China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT) vowed to accelerate the research and development of core technologies in 6G, optical communication and quantum communication to support the country's industry digitalization. 

Zhao Zhiguo, spokesperson for MIIT, said during a press conference held on Thursday that China's information communication industry saw stable growth in the first quarter of 2023 as revenue for businesses in the sector - including internet data centers, cloud computing and internet of things - increased by 24.5 percent year-on-year.  

China's telecommunications revenue hit 425.2 billion in the first three months of 2023, up 7.7 percent year-on-year, and the business volume also saw an 18 percent year-on-year increase, said Zhao.  

By the end of March, China had built 2.64 million 5G base stations across the country, and the number of 5G mobile phone users passed 620 million as the 5G network kept expanding to rural areas as well as city management, intelligent traffic and mobile payment, MIIT data showed.  

For the next step, the MIIT vowed to achieve breakthroughs in key technologies for 6G, optical communication and quantum communication, as well as enhancing the research and development of cutting-edge areas including artificial intelligence and block chain. It will also further secure the stability of industrial chains and supply chains. 

In addition, MIIT will expand the 5G and broadband network for information consumption and residential livelihoods to support industry digitalization.