China launches Long March 7A rocket carrying communications satellite

China launched a Long March 7A carrier rocket on Tuesday evening from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in the southern island province of Hainan, sending a communications satellite into orbit, according to China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp.

The ChinaSat 3B satellite was placed into a preset orbit by the rocket, which lifted off at 7:50 pm, the state-owned space contractor said in a news release.

Developed by the China Academy of Space Technology in Beijing, a subsidiary of the contractor, the satellite is intended to provide telecommunication, data transmission, and radio and television signal relay services, the company said.

The Long March 7A rocket model was designed by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, another subsidiary. It has a liftoff weight of 573 metric tons and a core-stage diameter of 3.35 meters. The rocket is capable of placing a 7-ton spacecraft into geosynchronous transfer orbit and has now completed five flights.

Tuesday’s launch marked the 577th mission in the Long March rocket series and China’s 30th rocket launch of 2025.