China's Long March-8A rocket launches new satellite group

A Long March-8A carrier rocket carrying a new group of internet satellites blasts off from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site in south China's Hainan Province, Jan. 13, 2026. The rocket lifted off at 11:25 p.m. (Beijing Time) on Tuesday, and successfully placed the payloads, the 18th group of low-orbit internet satellites, into preset orbit. (Photo by Liu Jianqiu/Xinhua)

WENCHANG, Hainan, Jan. 14 (Xinhua) -- China launched a Long March-8A carrier rocket on Tuesday in the southern island province of Hainan, sending a new group of internet satellites into space.

The rocket lifted off at 11:25 p.m. (Beijing Time) from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site. It successfully placed the payloads, the 18th group of low-orbit internet satellites, into preset orbit. ■

A Long March-8A carrier rocket carrying a new group of internet satellites blasts off from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site in south China's Hainan Province, Jan. 13, 2026. The rocket lifted off at 11:25 p.m. (Beijing Time) on Tuesday, and successfully placed the payloads, the 18th group of low-orbit internet satellites, into preset orbit. (Photo by Liu Jianqiu/Xinhua)