China launches satellite to analyze changes in Earth’s environment.

(MENAFN) On Saturday, China successfully launched a new satellite designed to improve its ability to monitor natural disasters using integrated data from space, air, and ground sources.

The satellite, named Zhangheng 1-02, was carried into orbit by a Long March-2D rocket that lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China at 3:56 p.m. local time. According to reports from China’s space agency, the launch went as planned, and the satellite entered its intended orbit.

Officials stated that this marks an important development in China’s efforts to use space-based tools to observe and analyze physical changes in the Earth’s environment.

The satellite, named after the ancient Chinese polymath Zhang Heng—credited with inventing the first seismoscope nearly two millennia ago—was the product of a joint effort between Chinese and Italian scientists. It is the first fully functional satellite aimed at studying Earth's physical fields, developed under China's broader plan for long-term civil space infrastructure.

Designed to operate for six years, Zhangheng 1-02 carries nine scientific instruments, including an electric field sensor built in collaboration with Italian scientists and a high-energy particle detector created by Italian developers. These tools will allow the satellite to gather crucial data that can help detect and respond to major natural disasters more effectively.

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