China launches new Earth remote sensing satellite

China successfully launched its new Gaofen 11-05 Earth remote sensing satellite this morning.

According to information reported by Zhongguo Hantianbao magazine, the launch was carried out from the Taiyuan Spaceport in northern China, at 11:03 Beijing time (06:03 Moscow time), and the satellite was launched using a Chinese Long March-4B space rocket.

Developed by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, the satellite will be used for remote sensing of the Earth in a variety of fields, such as urban planning, road design, crop assessment, and environmental disaster monitoring and mitigation. It will join the Gaofen satellite group launched by China between 2018 and 2022.

The Long March-4B rocket used in the launch is a three-stage, liquid-fueled Chinese space rocket, approximately 47 metres long and 3.8 metres in diameter, and can carry payloads weighing up to 2.5 tonnes to orbits 700 km above the Earth's surface.