YAOGAN 6

10-day predictions
YAOGAN 6 is classified as:

Yaogan
Disaster monitoring
Earth resources

NORAD ID: 34839

Int'l Code: 2009-021A

Launch date: April 22, 2009
Source: People's Republic of China (PRC)
Launch site: Taiyaun Space Center, China (TSC)

YAOGAN 6 is a Chinese clandestine remote sensing satellite. China will use this satellite for land resource surveys, environmental surveillance, urban planning, crop yield estimates, disaster response, and space science experiments. But Western analysts believe the spacecraft is actually a military reconnaissance satellite, possibly outfitted with a night-vision, cloud-piercing radar that can observe objects on the ground during darkness and all weather conditions. The Yaogan series is likely a cover for a fleet of spy satellites carrying radars and digital optical observation equipment.