China Has Two New Experimental Satellites In Orbit

The Chinese space agency launched two new satellites into orbit at 8:15am Beijing time on Thursday, August 4. The two satellites were carried by a Long March 2D rocket, which lifted off from theJiuquan Satellite Launch Center.

The two satellites are both used in different experimental capacities. One of them, theLing Qiao, is a communications satellite. According to a report fromXinhua, the Ling Qiao is a smart satellite being used for multimedia telecommunications experiments.

The second satellite is theChuangxin-1-04. This is the fourth a series of satellites built by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, the first of which was launched in 2003. Its being used to collect information about natural disasters, weather, and other types of information.

A Long March 2-D rocket lifting off in 2012. (Credit: China Great Wall Industry Corporation)

Bill Ostrove, a space industry analyst for Forecast International, noted that this launch marks a ramping up of rocket launches by China this year after a slow start.

Through the first half of the year, only one launch was conducted when a Long March 2C carried the Shijian 11-06 into orbit in March, Ostrove wrote. However, in the second half of the year, China has picked up the pace. Two launches were conducted in August, and now another launch took place in early September. China will likely conduct another few launches before year-end.

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China Has Two New Experimental Satellites In Orbit