China on Monday successfully launched its 21st satellite to support its global navigation and positioning network, hoping to end US' dominance on GPS.  

The satellite carried by Long March 3C carrier rocket was launched from the Xichang satellite center in Sichuan province. The latest launch was China's 21st satellite in the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System, putting China a step closer to giving an alternative to the US-operated global positioning system (GPS).

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The Beidou project, coined after the Big Dipper constellation, was officially announced in 1994, two decades after the  GPS. Its first satellite was launched in 2000, and 12 years later, the People's Republic has already set up a regional network capable of providing position, timing, navigation and short messages across China and in some Asian neighboring nations.

The first 16 Beidou satellites launched only covered the country and some close locations. The 17th satellite, which is the first of the new generation series, took off in March 2015 and will aid transitioning the network from regional to global coverage.

China Daily reports that once the 21st Beidou reaches orbit, it will join its four predecessors to test inter-satellite cross-links and a new navigation signalling system, which will determine the global coverage's structure and technical standards.

According to Beidou project commander in chief, the new satellite plays a critical role as it will attempt to integrate two signal systems for regional and global navigation and switch between the two.

The Xi administration plans to widen its services to countries within the "Belt and Road" initiative in two years time and offer worldwide coverage within four years.

GPS is a space-based navigation system operated by the US Air Force. It uses a constellation of 24 or more satellite flying more than 20,000 km above the Earth's surface.

TagsGPS, china, Beidou satellite, navigation system