China will launch its most advanced communications satellite in April as it builds a large capacity network that will enable passengers on jetliners and high-speed trains to use the internet. Shijian 13, developed by the China Academy of Space Technology, will be lifted on a Long March 3B carrier rocket from Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan province. The satellite, which weighs 4.6 metric tons, will stay for 15 years in a geostationary orbit about 36,000 kilometers above Earth. The satellite features a Ka-band broadband communications system capable of transmitting 20 gigabytes of data per second, making it the most powerful communications satellite China has ever developed. Shijian 13 will use electric propulsion after it enters orbit, which will extensively reduce the chemical fuel the satellite carries. Moreover, it will conduct space-to-ground laser communications experiments, the Academy said. In June, the Shijian 18 communications satellite, the first developed based on China’s new-generation DFH 5 satellite platform, will be launched by a Long March 5 rocket at the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan province. China plans to establish a constellation of advanced communications satellites based on the DFH 4 and DFH 5 platforms by 2025.