China has launched a new Yaogan reconnaissance satellite. The Long March 4C rocket took off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert at 16:15 ET (2015 GMT; 04:15 Beijing time on September 27) on September 26.

China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) It was announced about The successful launch, which occurred within an hour of liftoff, confirms that the previously undisclosed payload is designated Yaogan 33 (04); This marks the fourth satellite of the Yaogan 33 series.

The launch follows the launch of the third Yaogan 33 satellite earlier this month. This spacecraft also flew Long March 4C, launched from Jiuquan. Yaogan 33 (04) was tracked by the U.S. Space Force for 422 x 428 miles (680 x 688 kilometers) in a near-polar orbit.

As with previous Yaogan missions, no details about the spacecraft have been released. Chinese state media declarationIt was stated that the satellite will be used for “scientific experiments, land resources research, evaluation of crop yields, and disaster prevention and relief.”

The Yaogan 33 group was previously reported to have a number of space-based Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellites. SAR satellites can obtain detailed images of the earth through clouds and at night.

The Yaogan satellites are generally classified as Chinese remote sensing satellites, which Western observers believe are intended for military purposes. The launch was China’s 45th in 2023. This comes a week after the country’s first failed launch this year, when a Ceres-1 solid-state rocket operated by commercial company Galactic Energy failed to reach orbit.