China Aerospace   Satellite Programs & Technology   Launch Vehicles & Space Transportation  

China opens 2026 with two Long March launches; modified Long March‑6 lofts Yaogan‑50 01

On Jan. 13, 2026, China kicked off its launch campaign with two Long March flights. A modified Long March‑6 lifted Yaogan‑50 01 from Taiyuan at 22:16 Beijing time and placed the remote‑sensing satellite into its planned orbit to support land surveys, crop‑yield estimation and disaster prevention.

Discovered 2026-01-13T15:52:17.606274-08:00 | 2026-01-13T15:52:17.606274-08:00

Briefing

What Hype is tracking

  • China opened 2026 with a twin Long March launch cadence — including a modified Long March‑6 mission — a start Beijing says could presage a record year for launches; this aligns with the broader upswing in China’s space sector growth (see commercial sector context).
  • The Yaogan‑50 01 payload expands China’s operational Earth‑observation capacity for land surveys, crop‑yield estimates and disaster response, increasing the volume of state imagery in orbit and reinforcing the need for robust space‑domain awareness and deconfliction measures (see Space Force warning on low‑observable satellites).

Reported By

dailygalaxy.com keeptrack.space SpaceNews.com News.CN
Sources Tracked
5
First Seen
2026-01-13T15:52:17.606274-08:00
Latest Update
2026-01-15T09:38:56.416058-08:00
Coverage
Space

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