Attack vessel? Research vessel? Both? Mystery of new Chinese ship captured on satellite

China is building a mysterious new ship with some of the features of an amphibious assault vessel or a civilian ocean research ship, recent satellite images show.

The ship, which is being built by Guangzhou Shipyard International on Longxue Island in southern China, has a large open cockpit, according to photos taken last Wednesday by Planet Earth and published on Monday by the US military platform The Warzone .

The configuration resembles a light aircraft carrier or amphibious assault ships such as Japan’s Hyuga-class helicopter destroyer or China’s 075 attack ships, said Tom Shugart, deputy senior fellow at Washington-based security think tank Center for a New American Security.

Shugart, who spread the images on even a “research vehicle”.

The Warzone also highlighted the possibility that the new ship was designed to carry military aircraft, saying: “China has a long history of developing and deploying new maritime scientific research capabilities with clear potential military applicability.”

Shugart also said his attention was drawn to a 60-meter unmanned trimaran being built nearby by the No 716 Research Institute of the China State Shipbuilding Corporation. Chinese authorities have not commented on either ship or confirmed their purpose.