Top Secret Spy Satellite Launched from China

Chinese state media reported two days ago that the country managed to launch another remote sensing satellite into the Earth's orbit on Wednesday, from a desert-based launch facility. The payload, whose purpose and contents are unknown, but believed to be an ultra-secret spy satellite, was ferried aboard a Long March 2D delivery system, which has a good launch history with the Chinese Space Agency (CNSA). According to the aforementioned sources, the launch occurred at 0842 GMT, Space reports.

Public tracking data surveyed by analysts revealed that the payload, which has been dubbed Yaogan 7, was inserted into a Sun-synchronous orbit, located some 400 miles above the surface of the planet. The Long March rocket, which is one of CNSA's workhorse delivery systems, is powered entirely by hydrazine and nitrogen tetroxide, and stands impressively tall, at 135 feet (41.7 meters). However, it doesn't come even remotely close to the massive height of the ARES I-X prototype delivery system, which dwarfs it with its 100 meters.

According to Xinhua, the official Chinese news agency, the recently launched payload will be used for devising emergency-response applications, for crop-yield and land-resource surveys, as well as for a number of scientific experiments. The launch in itself was announced less than 24 hours in advance. While this may seem uncommon to you, consider that this is the standard Chinese military practice for these types of missions. The Long March take-off was the fifth for the country this year, and it officially brought the total number of missions to successfully reach orbit in 2009 to 69 worldwide.

In spite of Chinese reassurances that the mission is a scientific one, analysts consider that the entire Yaogan series is in fact a new, high-tech military surveillance grid. The new addition is believed to be sporting high-resolution cameras, alongside advanced radar reconnaissance capabilities. The spacecraft was developed by the China Academy of Space Technology, under direct supervision from the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, Xinhua also reports. The new electro-optical spy satellite is most likely not the last of the series. It is believed to be only the third outfitted with an optical imager, experts say.