Chi launches next generation weather satellite

Beijing, Dec 11: Chi launched a weather satellite at 12:11 a.m. local time on Sunday, marking an upgrade of Chi’s meteorological satellites in geostatiory orbit.

The Fengyun-4 satellite, the first of Chi’s second-generation weather satellites in geostatiory orbit to have been launched, is also the country’s first quantitative remote-sensing satellite in high orbit, Xinhua news agency reported.

The satellite, launched from the Xichang Satellite Launch Centre in southwest Chi’s Sichuan Province, was taken into orbit by a Long March-3B carrier rocket. The launch marked the 242nd mission of Chi’s Long March series of rockets.

The satellite will make high time, spatial and spectral resolution observations of the atmosphere, clouds and space environment of Chi and surrounding regions, significantly improving capabilities of weather and climate forecasts, according to the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for tiol Defense.

The Chi Meteorological Administration is the primary user of the satellite. Previously, Chi had successfully launched 14 weather satellites, seven of which are still in orbit. (IANS)