2 Chinese spacecraft just met up 22,000 miles above Earth. What were they doing?

By Andrew Jones published 2 days ago

A space situational awareness company spied satellite close approaches in geosynchronous orbit.

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a white rocket launches into a cloudy sky with forested mountains in the background

A Chinese Long March 3B rocket launches the military space debris mitigation satellite Shijian-21from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center on Oct. 24, 2021. Shijian-21 apparently met up with another Chinese satellite high above Earth in June 2025. (Image credit: CASC)

China brought two spacecraft together high above Earth as part of a refueling demonstration mission, according to a space situational awareness company.

China’s Shijian-21 and Shijian-25 satellites had been moving toward each other in geosynchronous orbit, around 22,236 miles (35,786 kilometers) above the equator, Spacenews reported on June 6. And now the pair appear to have had a brief first encounter, according to observations from the ground.

Optical tracking by the space situational awareness firm s2a systems shows a close approach between the two on June 14, with the pair, at times, virtually unresolvable from the other. This suggests that Shijian-21 and Shijian-25 made at least a test-run close approach and may have even performed a docking and undocking test.You may like

Tracking from s2a indicates that the two spacecraft made very close approaches on both June 13 and June 14.

The test aims to demonstrate on-orbit refueling and mission extension capabilities, helping to improve the sustainability of space operations.

Shijian-25 launched in January to demonstrate on-orbit refueling and satellite servicing, while Shijian-21 launched in 2021 and towed a dead satellite out of geosynchronous orbit and into a higher, “graveyard” orbit.

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Both spacecraft were developed by China’s state-owned Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology (SAST). SpaceNews also reported that U.S. surveillance spacecraft USA 270 and USA 271 were nearby, to the east and west of the two Chinese spacecraft, and likely to observe the activity.

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The U.S., through the aerospace giant Northrop Grumman, has already tested life-extension services for satellites in geosynchronous orbit with its Mission Extension Vehicle-1 and Mission Extension Vehicle-2 spacecraft, while Tokyo-based company Astroscale aims to carry out its own complex refueling tests as soon as next year.

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Andrew Jones

Contributing Writer

Andrew is a freelance space journalist with a focus on reporting on China’s rapidly growing space sector. He began writing for Space.com in 2019 and writes for SpaceNews, IEEE Spectrum, National Geographic, Sky & Telescope, New Scientist and others. Andrew first caught the space bug when, as a youngster, he saw Voyager images of other worlds in our solar system for the first time. Away from space, Andrew enjoys trail running in the forests of Finland. You can follow him on Twitter @AJ_FI.Load more comments

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Comment by Ross V.RVRoss V15 hrs agoWhat if it was just for a space hook up?reply 1 0sharereport
Comment by Leo Rostov.LRLeo Rostov16 hrs agoI suspect that Planet Earth is not ready for globalism. But in these space efforts, I hope we can lay the foundation for global cooperation between East and West.reply 1 0sharereport
Comment by Case123.CaCase1231 day ago”To observe” when it is carried out by the West.Nice try!reply1 reply 0 0sharereport
- Reply by Leo Rostov.LRLeo Rostov16 hrs agoReply to Case123Should we not do that? No doubt China “observes” every space move we make.reply 0 0sharereport