China launches Long March 7A carrier rocket

China launched a Long March 7A carrier rocket at the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan province on Friday night to deploy an experimental satellite, according to China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp.

The State-owned conglomerate said in a news release the rocket blasted off at 10:54 pm and soon transported the satellite, named Communication Technology Demonstrator 10, into a preset orbit.

Developed by the company's Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology, the satellite will be used to verify multi-band, high-speed satellite communication technologies.

The Long March 7A rocket type, designed by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, has a liftoff weight of 573 metric tons and a core-stage diameter of 3.35 meters. It is capable of placing a 7-ton spacecraft to a geosynchronous transfer orbit. By now, it has carried out five flights.

The mission was China's 51st rocket launch this year and the 495th flight of the Long March rocket family, the nation's main launch vehicle fleet.