China launches military spy satellite

China launched a classified military remote sensing satellite March 17 on a Long March 4C rocket. The three-stage rocket placed the Yaogan 34-02 satellite into an orbit at an altitude of 680 miles (1,100 kilometers). The Long March 4C lifted off from the Jiuquan space center in the Gobi Desert of northwestern China at 0709 GMT (3:09 a.m. EDT) on March 17. The launch occurred at 3:09 p.m. Beijing time, according to the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp., the country’s largest state-owned space industry contractor. More

(Source: SpaceFlight Now - Mar 25)