On Friday, China launched three secret Yaogan 35 series spy satellites, joining three prior sets already in space.
The three Yaogan 35 satellites were launched by a Long March 2D rocket from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan province on August 19 at 1:37 p.m. EDT (1737 GMT, 1:37 a.m. local time) (04 groups).
The trio will probably join the 3 pairs of triplet Yaogan 35 satellites that were launched in orbit by three successive, comparable missions in November 2021 and in June and July this year. In order to offer frequent, repeated sweeps over areas of interest, the first 9 satellites are now orbiting at a height of around 310 miles (500 kilometers) above the planet at an inclination of 35 degrees.
Yaogan 35 Series Spy Satellites Have Been Launched
The majority of Yaogan (“remote sensing”) satellites are poorly understood, and descriptions of their functions are frequently ambiguous.
The freshly launched spacecraft will primarily be used to “perform science experiments, sustainable land surveys, yield estimation of agricultural products, and disaster prevention and reduction,” according to Chinese state media. However, according to Western space researchers, China’s Yaogan series satellites support both military and civilian uses.
According to a mission patch released by SAST, the company that provided the Long March 2D rocket for the launch, the mission’s payload adapter carries a drag sail intended to help deorbit the roughly 660-pound (300 kilograms) adapter much sooner than it would otherwise. The adapter acts as an interface between a rocket stage and the spacecraft being sent into orbit.
On a subsequent Long March 2D launch from Xichang in June, SAST made its drag sail debut. China launched its 32nd orbital mission this year with this mission.
