China to finish integrated mapping system by 2020

BEIJING - China will build up an integrated mapping system to cover the ground, underground, sea, air and outer space by 2020, said a senior official of the national surveying and mapping authority.

The system, when completed, will facilitate the country's economic development, national defense and government decision-making, Li Pengde, deputy director of the National Administration of Surveying, Mapping and Geoinformation, said in an interview late Monday.

It will also provide spatial position information conducive for the government to cope with emergencies and for people to live with greater convenience.

For this purpose, said Li, the system will adopt new-generation equipment and technologies, including surveying vehicles and vessels, medium- and low-altitude remote sensing mapping platforms, aerospace mapping satellites and underground measuring robots.

China has made substantial progress in developing this equipment and technology, the official added.