On This Day In Space: April 24, 1970: China launches its 1st satellite (Image Credit: Space.com)
On April 24, 1970, China became the fifth nation to independently launch a satellite into orbit.
Dong Fang Hong I was the first of a series of satellites China launched under the Dong Fang Hong space satellite program. It lifted off on a Long March I rocket from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center.
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The name “Dong Fang Hong” translates to “The East is Red.” This was also the name of a Chinese song glorifying Chairman Mao, and it was China’s unofficial national anthem during the communist revolution in the 1960s.
This song was broadcast from the satellite via a radio transmitter for 20 days. The success of Dong Fang Hong I made China the fifth nation to launch a satellite on a native rocket, following the Soviet Union, the U.S., France and Japan.
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