China is in a rush to build its version of the Global Positioning System, by planning to launch 10 Beidou navigation satellitesbetween now and 2012.
Navigation systems deliver data from satellites that allow travelers, drivers, and military officials directions on locations and travel advice.
The third Beidou satellite will lift off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan province at "an appropriate moment soon", atop a Long March-3C carrier, the center said on Friday in a statement.
The Beidou system will rival the US-developed GPS, the EU’s Galileo and Russia’s Global Navigation Satellite System.
At present, nearly 200 million people worldwide are using GPS devices for positioning and navigation service and GPS earns $120 billion a year, earlier reports said.
Meanwhile, an independent navigation satellite system will strengthen information security.
Moreover, multiple navigation systems will benefit users, since a single source could become unstable.
In May 2009, the US issued a warning of a possible GPS interruption because of delays in modernizing and deploying the Air Force satellites that provide the service.
Cao Chong urged international cooperation on global navigation satellite systems to avoid widespread problems if one system fails.
The general public can expect to enjoy positioning, speed-measurement and time services by using the Beidou system for free. The accuracy of positioning is within 10m. A more accurate service will be available to authorized users only, according to the website.
