Reuters quoted China's authoritative Xinhua newsagency as disclosing that China has sent an "unbreakable" code from a satellite to the Earth, marking the first time space-to-ground quantum key distribution technology has been realized. The Pentagon has called it a "notable advance". Xinhua cited Pan Jianwei, lead scientist on the experiment from the state-run Chinese Academy of Sciences, as saying the satellite sent quantum keys to ground stations in China between 645 km (400 miles) and 1,200 km (745 miles) away at a transmission rate up to 20 orders of magnitude more efficient than an optical fibe. He clarified "That, for instance, can meet the demand of making an absolute safe phone call or transmitting a large amount of bank data," adding that any attempt to eavesdrop on the quantum channel would introduce detectable disturbances to the system. Pan Jianwei said "Once intercepted or measured, the quantum state of the key will change, and the information being intercepted will self-destruct." Xinhua said there were "enormous prospects" for applying this new generation of communications in defense and finance.

(Comment: China has realised the importance of Quantum technology, that's believed to be a new era of faster and more powerful super computers, and for the past two decades Quantum technology has been a top strategic focus in China's 5-year economic development plan. While the U.S. invested about $200 Million a year in quantum research, China spent $101 Billion in quantum physics in 2015.)