China's BeiDou satellite system helps Turkish farmers improve sowing and ploughing efficiency
When over the fertile lands of Anatolia and the shores of the Golden Horn, China's Great Bear – the BeiDou satellite constellation – lights up the sky, familiar ploughs and tractors begin to see space. Where seeds once fell by eye and night work was unthinkable, centimetre precision now reigns. The Northern Dipper, which for centuries guided seafarers and travellers, today helps Turkish grain growers sow straighter, save effort and reap rich harvests. Technologies born in one country become a shared asset, and behind this lies not only engineering ingenuity but also a living connection between people separated by thousands of kilometres yet united by a common drive for progress.
Gao Wei, an agricultural machinery engineer from Qianxun SI (the operator of the BeiDou ground‑based augmentation system), has spent the last three years testing the BeiDou automatic navigation system for farm equipment. He and his colleague travelled to an experimental base in Konya, a major city in central Turkey, to install BDS devices on local agricultural machinery. Fukan, a local technician with five years of experience, is well aware of the longstanding problems of mechanised farming. Before satellite navigation was installed, farmers relied on visual control: seeds were often planted crookedly, delaying the sowing season and reducing quality. Night work was nearly impossible. After field trials, Fukan was clearly impressed: "Thanks to the navigation system, row spacing has become more uniform and production efficiency has improved. For farmers, this is a very practical and easy‑to‑use system." According to Gao, the system uses high‑precision positioning from BeiDou satellites combined with intelligent terminals, receivers and sensors – the steering motor automatically guides the machine along a preset route.
BeiDou services and related products are exported to more than 140 countries and regions worldwide. For Gao, seeing Chinese innovations take root abroad is a source of pride: "As a BeiDou agricultural machinery engineer, I am especially proud that Chinese technology is being recognised by foreign farmers. I look forward to BDS expanding further overseas." BDS is a mature, fully functional global satellite navigation system: 50 operational satellites are currently in orbit, providing global positioning accuracy better than 10 metres, velocity accuracy of 0.2 m/s and timing accuracy within 20 nanoseconds. It is increasingly integrated into positioning, navigation and international search‑and‑rescue operations.
As CCTV+ reports, the successful trials in Turkey open new prospects for agriculture in many countries, where high‑tech solutions help address pressing issues of food security and labour efficiency.
