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Chinese Yaogan Satellites Flew Over Lviv During Russia’s October 5 Missile Strikes
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During Russia’s large-scale missile and drone strike on October 5, at least three Chinese reconnaissance satellites from the Yaogan series flew over western Ukraine—the area that sustained the heaviest attacks.
According to Militarnyi on October 5, which analyzed data from the monitoring service Heavens Above, the satellites Yaogan 33, Yaogan 33-03, and Yaogan 33-04 passed over the Lviv region nine times between midnight and around 11:30 a.m.
At approximately 6 a.m., an additional optical reconnaissance satellite, Yaogan 34, entered the region. It was expected to complete seven orbits over western Ukraine throughout the day.
Analysts note that Chinese reconnaissance satellites regularly pass not only over western regions but across Ukraine as a whole. In total, more than 60 Yaogan-series satellites currently have orbital paths that allow them to conduct surveillance of Ukrainian territory, Militarnyi reported. These satellites are believed to be capable of optical, radar, and electronic intelligence gathering.
The Yaogan constellation operates in low Earth orbit at an altitude of about 700 kilometers, completing a full rotation around the planet roughly every 90 minutes.
Accorfing to Militarnyi, China claims the Yaogan satellites are used for scientific experiments, land resource surveys, and disaster monitoring. However, Western and Ukrainian experts view them as dual-use or military intelligence platforms equipped with synthetic aperture radar (SAR) systems, similar to Finland’s ICEYE satellites.
The Yaogan 33 satellites were launched in 2022–2023, replacing the first-generation Yaogan-1 SAR satellites that entered service beginning in 2006. The earlier Yaogan-1 operated an L-band radar capable of producing high-resolution Earth images—five meters at a 40-kilometer swath or 20 meters at a 100-kilometer swath.
Given nearly more then two decades of technological progress, specialists suggest that the Yaogan 33 generation likely matches the performance of modern Western reconnaissance satellites, providing China—and potentially Russia—with advanced all-weather imaging capabilities over Ukraine.
Earlier, Russia launched one of its most extensive combined attacks in weeks overnight on October 5, striking multiple Ukrainian regions with drones and missiles.
The Lviv region suffered the heaviest damage, with officials describing it as one of the most massive assaults since the start of the full-scale invasion. Four people were killed and four others injured when drones and missiles hit the area overnight.
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