The Long March 4B rocket before launch, hosting a payload with the Gaofen-11 satellite. Photo: China Academy of Space Technology

China launched Gaoefen-11, an optical remote sensing satellite, as part of its high-resolution Earth observation project. The Gaofen-11 satellite was launched yesterday on a Long March 4B rocket at 11 a.m. Beijing Time from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in northern Shanxi Province, according to the China Academy of Space Technology.

The China Academy of Space Technology (CAST) developed Gaoefen-11. The satellite can be used for land survey, urban planning, road network design, agriculture, and disaster relief applications. Its data will also be used for the country’s Belt and Road Initiative.

This was the 282nd flight mission by a Long March carrier rocket. Since the Gaoefen project began in 2010, China has gained an increasingly clearer view of the planet.