
China’s most “senior” carrier rocket in service launches the highest-resolution commercial SAR satellite!
On the day of 9th November 2024 Hours Hong- Kong SAR – Beijing time CNSA –China National Space Administration , China, People’s Republic of China At 1139Hong Kong SAR- Beijing Time , the Chang Zheng -Long March 2C carrier rocket successfully launched launches the highest-resolution commercial SAR satellite!.. From The Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, Inner Mongolia, China, People’s Republic of China..

At 11:39 Beijing time on November 9, 2024, at the 9401 launch station of the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the inland northwest China, the “Long March 2C” carrier rocket was ignited and launched, sending four satellites including Aerospace Hongtu PIESAT-2 01~04 into a sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) at an altitude of about 528 kilometers.





PIESAT-2 01-04 is a synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellite, which is developed by Shanghai Aerospace Technology Company under Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology, and jointly developed by Aerospace Information Technology Company and Zhuzhou Space Interstellar Satellite Technology Company. This type of satellite is equipped with X-band SAR payload, on-board intelligent processing payload, Beidou short message communication payload, and imaging resolution can reach 0.3 meters (test mode), which is the highest resolution of commercial SAR satellites at present. The positioning accuracy is better than 100 meters. The comprehensive performance of the whole satellite and the application efficiency of constellation networking are at the leading level of domestic commercial SAR satellites. The satellite will be used for high-precision terrain mapping, deformation detection, and three-dimensional stereo imaging and other application needs.

This mission is the first launch of the PIESAT-2 constellation of satellites. The PIESAT-2 constellation plans to deploy 12 X-band synthetic aperture radar (SAR) satellites and 4 C-band SAR satellites, and plans to complete all launch missions in the first quarter of 2025.
The Long March 2C was developed by the First Academy of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. It is a medium-sized normal-temperature liquid carrier rocket with a two-stage tandem structure. The rocket is about 42.3 meters long, with a first and second stage diameter of 3.35 meters, a takeoff mass of 241 tons, and a 500-kilometer sun-synchronous orbit (SSO) capacity of 2.1 tons. This rocket is equipped with a 4.2-meter diameter fairing.
This launch mission used the center load-bearing frame multi-satellite adapter for the first time, which improved the space utilization of the fairing, and applied a new lightweight fairing basket to improve the lifting efficiency. At the same time, this launch mission used unified ground test and launch control equipment for the first time at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, which improved the product integration and test and launch automation; promoted job integration and process optimization, and further shortened the test and launch cycle.

The Long March 2C successfully completed its maiden flight on September 9, 1982. It is China’s longest-serving carrier rocket and the country’s first “gold medal rocket.” So far, the Long March 2C rocket has carried out 80 launch missions, 79 of which were successful (including one partial success), with a launch success rate of 98.75%.

This launch is the 6th launch mission of the “Long March 2C” carrier rocket in 2024, the 16th launch of the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, the 53rd launch mission in China and the 206th orbital space launch in the world.
Images and visuals are from their Respectives CMS China Manned SpaceCNSA-China National Space Administration









































