China on Thursday launched a new remote sensing satellite into space.
The satellite, Yaogan-36, was launched from Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwestern Sichuan province on an indigenously built Long March-2D rocket.
The satellite successfully entered its planned orbit.
It was the 455th flight mission of the Long March carrier rocket series.
#China successfully sent a new remote sensing satellite – Yaogan-36 into space with a #LongMarch-2D carier rocket from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in #Sichuan province early this morning.
The launch was the 455th flight mission of the Long March carrier rocket series. pic.twitter.com/K35DvtylBr
— Liu Yongfeng (@liupheonix) December 15, 2022
Back in November, China launched the 100th satellite created by the 509th Research Institute of the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology, a new remote-sensing satellite of the Yaogan-34 series from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China. It will mostly be utilised for disaster preparedness and land resource surveys.
A Long March-4C rocket has launched the Yaogan-34 03 satellite into its intended orbit.
It was the Long March carrier rocket series’ 450th flight mission. The Long March-4C launch vehicle is a three-stage carrier rocket that operates in ambient liquid and has a wide range of uses.
The Long March-4 series launch vehicles utilise variable launch modes and can carry one or more satellites in a single launch to accommodate various satellite types and orbital needs. A 700 km height allows them to transfer up to 3 tonnes into Sun-synchronous orbit.
This satellite for remote sensing will be utilised for tasks including land surveying, city planning, estimating crop yields, and disaster avoidance.
It is the 100th satellite created by the state-owned space powerhouse China Aerospace Science and Technology (CAST) Corp.’s 509th Research Institute of the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology (SAST).
“From zero to 100, satellites developed by our institute have shown advances and breakthroughs with every launch. From low-Earth orbit to high-Earth orbit, from near-Earth to interplanetary, from scientific experiments to operational applications, from single-star to multi-star multi-orbit cooperative networks, these satellites will lead the industry, with their comprehensive efficiency and technical strength reaching world-class levels,” SAST said in a statement.
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Yaogan-01, a pioneering microwave remote-sensing satellite from China, was launched in 2006. For the first time, it accomplished continuous, all-weather, high-resolution Earth observation. Additionally, it elevated China to the position of second-place global producer of a medium-resolution microwave remote-sensing satellite.
Since then, more than 30 microwave remote-sensing satellites with resolution enhanced to sub-meter level have been constructed and launched, playing a significant role in China’s emergency disaster relief, ocean observation, agriculture and forestry monitoring, Earth mapping, and other areas.