24/7 News Coverage
January 09, 2026
DRAGON SPACE
China tallies record launch year as lunar and asteroid plans advance



Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jan 09, 2026
China's space sector completed 93 orbital launch missions in 2025, the highest annual total the nation has recorded. China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp (CASC), the main State-owned contractor, closed out the year on Dec 31 with a Long March 7A launch from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan that placed two technology demonstration satellites into orbit. The company conducted 73 launches in 2025, including 69 by Long March rockets and four by its Smart Dragon 3 series, delivering mo ... read more

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Previous Issues Jan 07 Jan 05 Jan 02
DRAGON SPACE
Tiangong science program delivers data surge
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jan 09, 2026
Chinese astronauts and ground-based science teams completed 86 new scientific and technological tasks on the Tiangong space station in 2025, underscoring the outpost's expanding role in research, ac ... more
MOON DAILY
Chinese astronauts hone extreme cave survival skills
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jan 06, 2026
Twenty-eight astronauts and trainees have completed China's first cave-survival training program, a nearly monthlong exercise run by the Astronaut Center of China in Chongqing's Wulong district. ... more
ENERGY TECH
Tokamak study maps error impacts on plasma equilibrium models
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jan 05, 2026
A research team led by Prof. LIU Haiqing at the Hefei Institutes of Physical Science of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has carried out a comprehensive analysis of uncertainty propagation in free-bo ... more
SPACE TRAVEL
China launches twin Shijian-29 satellites to test space-target detection tech
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 31, 2025
China has launched a pair of Shijian-29 satellites on a Long March 7A rocket, adding new technology-demonstration assets to its growing space-based surveillance and tracking capabilities. ... more
SUPERPOWERS
Timeline of Japan and China's spat
Tokyo (AFP) Jan 9, 2026
A spat between Tokyo and Beijing following Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi's suggestion of Japanese military action if China invaded Taiwan isn't going away. ... more
FLOATING STEEL
Chinese, Iranian warships in South Africa for exercises
Simon'S Town, South Africa (AFP) Jan 8, 2026
Chinese and Iranian warships were docked off South Africa's main navy base Thursday ahead of exercises that officials said were also meant to involve Russia. ... more
AFRICA NEWS
China FM visiting four African countries on annual tour
Beijing (AFP) Jan 7, 2026
China's top diplomat kicks off a New Year trip to Africa on Wednesday, the foreign ministry said, seeking to boost trade on a four-country circuit that includes several recent political hotspots. ... more
SPACE TRAVEL
Overseas scholars drawn to China's scientific clout, funding
Shanghai (AFP) Jan 7, 2026
China's government has long made efforts to tempt top scientists from abroad, but researchers say its institutions themselves are increasingly attracting talent thanks to their generous funding and growing prestige. ... more

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GPS NEWS
China tracks surge in geospatial information industry
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jan 05, 2026
China's geospatial information industry is approaching a total value of 1 trillion yuan (about $143 billion), according to the Ministry of Natural Resources. The ministry reported that by the end of ... more
TECH SPACE
Planet delivers first light image from Pelican 6 satellite capturing Lhasa Gonggar Airport
Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jan 01, 2026
Planet Labs has released the first light image from its Pelican 6 Earth imaging satellite, highlighting Lhasa Gonggar International Airport in Tibet, China, and demonstrating the new spacecraft's im ... more
SUPERPOWERS
Viral 'Chinese Trump' wins laughs on both sides of Pacific
Chongqing, China (AFP) Jan 8, 2026
Outstretching his hands in a signature Donald Trump pose, impersonator Ryan Chen mimics the US president's voice and gestures with such accuracy that he has become a social media phenomenon with his funny videos. ... more
TAIWAN NEWS
China-sanctioned Japan lawmaker says Taiwan 'independent'
Taipei (AFP) Jan 6, 2026
A China-born Japanese lawmaker sanctioned by Beijing arrived in Taipei on Tuesday, vowing to tell the world that "Taiwan is an independent country". ... more
AEROSPACE
Taiwan inspects F-16 jets as search continues for pilot
Taipei (AFP) Jan 8, 2026
Taiwan has temporarily grounded its fleet of F-16 fighter jets for inspection, the defence minister said Thursday, as the search continued for a pilot whose aircraft apparently crashed into the sea. ... more
TAIWAN NEWS
China military drills near Taiwan 'unnecessarily' raise tensions: US
Washington, United States (AFP) Jan 2, 2026
Chinese war games around Taiwan "unnecessarily" spiked tensions in the region, the US State Department said Thursday, calling on Beijing to "cease its military pressure." ... more
TECHNOLOGY NEWS


TAIWAN NEWS
Taiwan's president vows to defend sovereignty after China drills
Taipei (AFP) Jan 1, 2026
Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te vowed on Thursday to defend the democratic island's sovereignty in a New Year's speech, after China carried out military drills. ... more
AEROSPACE
Taiwan launches search for fighter jet pilot
Taipei (AFP) Jan 6, 2026
Taiwan's Air Force said Tuesday it has launched a search for a pilot believed to have ejected from a F-16 fighter jet over the sea during a routine training mission. ... more
EARTH OBSERVATION
China geospatial information industry approaches 1 trillion yuan output
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jan 07, 2026
China's geospatial information sector, a key component of digital mapping and positioning, is approaching a scale of 1 trillion yuan, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources. The indust ... more
NUKEWARS
South Korea's Lee says urged Xi to help curb North's nukes
Shanghai (AFP) Jan 7, 2026
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said Wednesday he had urged Chinese leader Xi Jinping to help him curb Pyongyang's nuclear programme and suggested a freeze in its development of weapons of mass destruction was "feasible" with the right conditions. ... more
NUKEWARS
Xi urges South Korea's Lee to make 'right choices' in turbulent world
Beijing (AFP) Jan 6, 2026
China's top legislator told South Korean President Lee Jae Myung in Beijing on Tuesday that he hoped for stable ties and deepening cooperation between the two countries, state media said. ... more
TAIWAN NEWS
China expert mocks Taiwan's HIMARS as 'porcupine in a glass box'
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jan 03, 2026
Taiwan's acquisition of US-made High Mobility Artillery Rocket Systems (HIMARS) has drawn a sharp rebuke from a mainland military strategist, who likens the systems to "a porcupine trapped in a one- ... more
SUPERPOWERS
As Trump imposes 'Donroe' Doctrine, murky message to US rivals
Washington, United States (AFP) Jan 3, 2026
With a major attack to arrest Venezuela's leader, President Donald Trump is showing that the United States will impose its will in its neighborhood - and the lesson may not be lost on Russia and China. ... more
ICE WORLD
Dogsleds, China and independence: Facts on Greenland
Copenhagen (AFP) Jan 8, 2026
US President Donald Trump has stepped up his designs on taking over Denmark's autonomous territory Greenland, but questions abound about why he has taken an aggressive stance when the US already has extensive access to the Arctic island. ... more
AFRICA NEWS
African Union reaffirms 'One China' policy in FM visit
Nairobi (AFP) Jan 8, 2026
The African Union reaffirmed its commitment to the "One China" policy, denying Taiwan's independence, during a visit by China's top diplomat Wang Yi to its headquarters in Ethiopia on Thursday. ... more
SOLAR SCIENCE
Satellite and model fusion boosts China solar radiation forecasts
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 31, 2025
The intermittent output of solar power creates challenges for grid operators who must keep supply and demand in balance. Traditional numerical weather prediction models often handle cloud initializa ... more
BIO FUEL
Biochar layer boosts hydrogen rich gas yields from corn straw
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Jan 01, 2026
Biochar can help convert agricultural residues such as corn straw into hydrogen rich gas while limiting carbon deposits on metal catalysts, according to a study in the journal Biochar. Researchers d ... more
ICE WORLD
Dogsleds, China and independence: Facts on Greenland
Copenhagen (AFP) Jan 7, 2026
US President Donald Trump has stepped up his designs on taking over Denmark's autonomous territory Greenland, but questions abound about why he has taken an aggressive stance when the US already has extensive access to the Arctic island. ... more
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PILLAGING PIRATES
Accused scam boss Chen Zhi arrested in Cambodia, extradited to China: Phnom Penh
Phnom Penh (AFP) Jan 7, 2026
Chinese-born tycoon Chen Zhi, who was indicted by the United States on fraud and money-laundering charges for running a multibillion-dollar cyberscam network from Cambodia, has been arrested there and extradited to China, Phnom Penh said Wednesday. ... more
SINO DAILY
China's birth-rate push sputters as couples stay child-free and pay contraceptive tax
Beijing (AFP) Jan 5, 2026
Twenty-five-year-old Grace and her husband are set on staying child-free, resisting pressure from their parents and society to produce offspring, even as China strives to boost its flagging birth rate. ... more
AFRICA NEWS
China's Xi congratulates Guinea junta chief on election win
Beijing (AFP) Jan 5, 2026
Chinese President Xi Jinping has congratulated Guinea's junta chief on his presidential election victory, state media reported Monday, a day after the African country's supreme court validated his landslide result. ... more
ROBO SPACE
Startups go public in litmus test for Chinese AI
Hong Kong (AFP) Jan 8, 2026
Leading Chinese artificial intelligence startup Zhipu AI soared as it went public in Hong Kong on Thursday, a day before rival MiniMax also makes its market debut in a litmus test for the country's rapidly developing sector. ... more
PILLAGING PIRATES
'Sever the chain': scam tycoons in China's crosshairs
Bangkok (AFP) Jan 9, 2026
China is moving against the cyberscam tycoons making fortunes in Southeast Asia, driven by mounting public pressure and Beijing's desire to keep control of judicial processes, analysts say. ... more
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