China launched the Zi Yuan 2 digital imaging remote-sensing satellite aboard a Long March 4B booster from Taiyuan on 1 September.
The satellite is based on the spacecraft bus developed for the Sino-Brazilian CEBRS satellite launched in 1999, but is not part of the CEBRS programme.
The Zi Yuan is in a lower orbit than the CEBRS spacecraft and is equipped with similar imaging systems, which will provide higher-resolution images for national remote sensing, city planning, crop yield assessment, disaster monitoring and space science experiments."
Taiwan has expressed concern, however, as it believes that the Zi Yuan 2's 5m (16ft) image resolution capability in the lower orbit has military applications.
China plans to launch the first in a series of ocean monitoring satellites in 2001. One satellite will be launched every two years.
Source: Flight International
