Posted: Thu, Sep 9, 2004, 2:11 PM ET (1811 GMT)
A Chinese Long March booster placed two small research satellites into orbit Thursday, according to Chinese media reports. A Long March 4B rocket lifted off from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in northern China at 7:14 pm EDT Wednesday (2314 GMT Wednesday, 7:14 am Beijing time Thursday). One satellite, SJ-6A, separated 11 minutes after launch, while the other, SJ-6B, separated one minute later. The two satellites are part of the Shijian series of experimental satellites, and are designed to spend two years in orbit to study the space radiation environment and perform other, unspecified experiments. The launch is the third in as many months for China and the fourth overall this year. This launch, like the previous one a week and a half ago, was not announced beforehand.

Related Links:

•  Xinhua article
•  People's Daily article
•  AFP article