China resumes launches after one-month pause
Posted: Sun, Mar 15, 2026, 8:28 AM ET (1228 GMT)
China conducted a pair of launches hours apart Thursday. A Long March 8A lifted off at 3:48 pm EDT (1948 GMT) from the commercial spaceport on Hainan carrying the 20th set of Guowang broadband constellation satellites. Officials did not disclose the number of satellites on the launch, but previous Long March 8A launches for Guowang carried nine satellites each. A Long March 2D rocket lifted off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center at 6:33 pm EDT (2233 GMT) and placed into orbit the Shiyan-30 03 and 04 spacecraft. Official media said the satellites will be used to test Earth observation technologies. The launches were the first in a month from China after a break for the Chinese New Year holiday.
China conducted a pair of launches hours apart Thursday. A Long March 8A lifted off at 3:48 pm EDT (1948 GMT) from the commercial spaceport on Hainan carrying the 20th set of Guowang broadband constellation satellites. Officials did not disclose the number of satellites on the launch, but previous Long March 8A launches for Guowang carried nine satellites each. A Long March 2D rocket lifted off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center at 6:33 pm EDT (2233 GMT) and placed into orbit the Shiyan-30 03 and 04 spacecraft. Official media said the satellites will be used to test Earth observation technologies. The launches were the first in a month from China after a break for the Chinese New Year holiday.
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