Zi Yuan 3
During the early 1990s Chinese spacecraft designers were investigating the potential of a constellation of several low-mass, LEO Zi Yuan (Earth Resources) spacecraft to fulfill remote sensing objectives. One concept envisioned seven coplanar spacecraft of less than 250 kg each in a 770-km, sun-synchronous orbit. Each spacecraft would carry 4-channel CCD sensors capable of 400-km swath widths and 100-m ground resolution. Total payload mass (camera system, converters, power supply, etc.) is budgeted for only 10 kg. A cooled, multi-channel infrared camera system with a mass of 40-50 kg is also being considered but may require separate spacecraft platforms (Reference 633).
