XICHANG, June 23 (Xinhua) -- China launched the last satellite of the BeiDou Navigation Satellite System (BDS) from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China's Sichuan Province at 9:43 a.m. on Tuesday (Beijing Time).

The satellite, the 55th in the family of BeiDou that means "Big Dipper" in Chinese, was sent into space by a Long March-3B carrier rocket, according to the China Satellite Navigation Office.