China builds 80+ desert launch pads to harden nuclear silos

China is constructing a vast network of military infrastructure, including more than 80 launch pads, in the remote northwestern desert to support and protect its land-based nuclear missile silos, according to an analysis of satellite imagery by security analysts. The construction, centered on two large octagon-shaped installations, represents a significant expansion of hardened facilities and is viewed by experts as an effort to ensure a reliable nuclear second-strike capability.

The satellite images reveal a sprawling complex of concrete pads, bunkers, communications nodes, and support facilities spread over thousands of square kilometers in eastern Xinjiang, southwest of the existing Hami missile silo fields. Analysts assessing the imagery say the pads could be used for mobile missile launchers, air-defense batteries, electronic warfare, and command operations. The two primary octagon structures, built over the past six years, contain housing, storage for large military vehicles, armored bunkers, airfields, and railheads. Recent images also show signs of military exercises involving large vehicles and camouflaged launch sites.

Security scholars consulted for the analysis...