China launches satellite for quantum communications test

Ling Xin

China has launched a probe to test the feasibility of quantum communication between ground and space, as Ling Xin reports

Andrew Grant

Researchers used a satellite to exchange secure quantum keys between ground stations in China and Austria.

Steven T. Corneliussen

New “space race”? Science’s collegial advance? Quantum network engineering study? Basic research venue?

Jiao Li

China will launch a satellite in 2016 that will aim to demonstrate the feasibility of a secure global communications network based on quantum cryptography.

Jian-Wei Pan

By using satellites, ultra-long-distance quantum communication and tests of quantum foundations could be achieved at a global scale. The Quantum Experiment Science Satellite (QUESS) in China, also called Micius, one of the scientific satellite programs in the Strategic Priority Program on space science, the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was launched on 16 August 2016. There are totally 4 scientific payloads. We give a brief overview of the quantum experiment science satellite project and present most recent science results. The main scientific goal of the quantum experiment science satellite was achieved in 2017. Here, we introduce the latest achievements in satellite-based quantum communication and large-scale tests of quantum foundations obtained by Micius.