China successfully put a telecommunications satellite, the Zhongxing-22, into orbit on the early morning of January 26 with a Long March 3-A rocket.

The carrier rocket blasted off at 00:45 (Beijing time) from the Xichang Satellite Launching Center in Sichuan Province, southwest China.

This is the fourth flight of the powerful carrier rocket since it made its debut in 1994. The carrier rocket had previously succeeded in putting into orbit two telecommunications satellites and one scientific experimental satellite.

This launch is the 60th of the Long March carrier family. Since October 1996, carrier rockets of this family have made 18 successful flights in a row.

The Zhongxing-22 satellite weighs 2,300 kilograms. It will be mainly used for ground telecommunications under the supervision of the China Telecommunications and Broadcasting Satellite Corporation. The satellite will be in service for about eight years. In 30 minutes after launching, the satellite entered the predetermined earth-synchronous orbit, with a perigee of 210 kilometers, and an apogee of 41,974 kilometers. It is expected to be positioned at 98 degrees east longitude above the equator.