China successfully launched its second geostationary orbit
meteorological satellite, Fengyun-2D (FY-2D), on Friday to provide
better weather forecast services for the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games.
The FY-2D satellite was launched into the target orbit at 8:53
AM aboard a Long March-3A carrier rocket from the Xichang Satellite
Launch Center in southwest China's Sichuan Province.
"The satellite will monitor weather changes at all the Beijing
2008 Olympic Games venues," said Li Qin, chief designer of the
FY-2D.
"The FY-2D will provide accurate and timely information about
weather changes to help us with weather forecasts during the
Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, especially the opening and closing
ceremony and important contests," he said.
The satellite separated from the rocket about 24 minutes after
lift-off and then successfully entered the geosynchronous transfer
orbit, according to the satellite monitoring center in Xi'an.
This launch is the eleventh flight of the LM-3A carrier rocket
and all11 flights have been successful.
"The LM-3A has now entered a phase of steady commercial
operation," said Li Jinghong, deputy designer of the rocket.
China started developing the LM-3A in March 1986. At its first
launch on Feb. 8, 1994, the LM-3A carrier rocket successfully sent
the Shijian-4 satellite and a dummy satellite into orbit.
The 52.52-meter-long LM-3A is mainly used to launch satellites
to geosynchronous transfer orbit. With a payload of 2.6 tons, it
can transport several satellites at the same time.
"We are continuing to improve the technology and add equipment.
For the launch of the FY-2D we added 48-channel GPS," Li said.
The 1.39-ton FY-2D satellite will take up a position in the next
few days at 86.5 degrees east longitude right above the
equator.
The FY-2D, developed and manufactured by the Shanghai Academy of
Spaceflight Technology affiliated to China Aerospace Science and
Industry Corp., can observe weather changes around-the-clock. It is
capable of carrying out infrared nephanalysis of the form and
structure of clouds and can also analyse data about visible daytime
light.
The Fengyun-2D will form a twin-star observation system with
Fengyun-2C, China's first geostationary orbit weather satellite
which went into orbit on Oct. 19, 2004, according to the China
Meteorological Administration (CMA).
The two satellites have their own observation tasks, but can
also replace each other if one of them malfunctions, the CMA
said.
FY-2D will help the CMA bolster weather monitoring information
from western China where cold fronts and sandstorms usually
begin.
"The Fengyun-2D will expand our geostationary weather
observation range and improve the forecast and monitoring of
disaster weather," said Yang Jun, director of the National
Satellite Meteorological Center.
(China.org.cn, Xinhua News Agency December 8, 2006)
