China launches quantum satellite in bid for secure communications

BEIJING — China launched the world’s first quantum communications satellite from the Gobi Desert early Tuesday, a major step in the country’s bid to be at the forefront of quantum research, which could lead to new, completely secure methods of transmitting information.

The satellite is expected to circle the earth every 90 minutes after entering orbit at an altitude of about 310 miles, according to a report by Xinhua, the state news agency.

An article about the Chinese program that the journal Nature published in July said that any tinkering with quantum communications would be detectable, which is why the method is secure.

If China succeeds in its satellite launch, the article said, that could mean many more such Chinese satellites in orbit, “which will together create a super-secure communications network, potentially linking people anywhere in the world.”