Urumqi: China and several Central Asian countries have signed a "tech cooperation agreement" to develop a satellite constellation aimed at sharing remote-sensing data to address common geological threats, including earthquakes, agricultural pests, and glacial floods. The agreement was signed on Thursday at the ongoing ninth China-Eurasia Expo in Urumqi, the capital of China's northwestern Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region.

According to Anadolu Agency, scientists from Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, and Tajikistan attended the signing ceremony, expressing confidence that the joint project would bring mutual benefits. The space-based monitoring network, known as the "Tianwu Constellation," will initially comprise a system of five satellites.

Tong Qingxi, a remote-sensing specialist from the Chinese Academy of Sciences, noted that China's Xinjiang, which borders several Central Asian countries, shares similar geographic conditions and geological threats with its neighbors, such as earthquakes, landslides, and floods caused by glacial melt. "It is a practical application of the Belt and Road cooperation and a shared effort to build a community with a shared future for humanity," Tong stated.

The satellite data collected over the region will be processed at a computing center in Xinjiang, which will develop artificial intelligence (AI) models for geological disaster prediction, agricultural pest detection, and glacial melt monitoring. Akobir Mirzorakhimzoda, vice president of the National Academy of Sciences of Tajikistan, emphasized that mastering advanced technologies such as satellite networking and AI enables real-time monitoring and analysis of environmental indicators, providing a reliable basis for informed decision-making.