China successfully launched its second Gaofen-14 Earth observation satellite late Saturday, expanding its growing fleet of high-resolution mapping satellites under the China High-resolution Earth Observation System (CHEOS) program.
A Long March 3B rocket lifted off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan Province at 11:55 p.m. Eastern Time on October 25 (0355 UTC, October 26). The launch took place under cloudy skies but was declared a success by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) within an hour of liftoff.
The new satellite, called Gaofen-14 (02), was placed into a sun-synchronous orbit, so it will pass over the same part of the Earth at about the same local time each day. This helps it capture images with steady lighting, which is important for accurate mapping.
Purpose and Capabilities
Gaofen-14 (02) is part of China’s CHEOS network, which includes a range of satellites equipped with optical, multispectral, hyperspectral, and radar sensors. Together, these satellites are used for applications such as urban planning, land surveying, road network design, agriculture management, and disaster response.
Research published in 2023 about the first Gaofen-14 satellite shows that this series is built to provide high-precision global mapping and create 1:10,000 scale geographic information products. These are among the most detailed mapping data made in China.
The Gaofen-14 (02) satellite carries several advanced instruments, including:
- Dual-line-array cameras for 3D stereo imaging
- A hyperspectral camera with around 100 spectral bands
- A ranging laser for accurate distance and elevation measurements
It can capture images with a panchromatic resolution of 0.6 meters, meaning it can identify objects smaller than a meter wide from space. Its multispectral resolution is around 2.4 meters, with a swath width (area covered in one pass) of approximately 40 kilometers. The hyperspectral sensor offers 5-meter resolution across visible and near-infrared wavelengths.
China’s Observation Network
This is the second Gaofen-14 satellite, following the first launched in December 2020. Together, the two satellites will enhance China’s ability to create high-accuracy 3D maps and support a wide range of scientific, civilian, and strategic applications.
The spacecraft was built by the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST), a key division of CASC. Initial tracking data show that the satellite entered a 486–493 km orbit, similar to that of its predecessor.
This is only the second time the Long March 3B rocket has been used for a sun-synchronous orbit mission. Usually, it launches satellites to geostationary transfer orbit, mostly for communication and navigation. For this mission, the rocket used a longer 4.2-meter fairing to fit the tall payload.
The Long March 3B is a three-stage rocket with four side boosters and has been a workhorse of China’s space program, also launching missions like Chang’e-3 and Chang’e-4 lunar landers and the Tianwen-2 asteroid mission earlier this year.
China’s Record Space Activity
The Gaofen-14 (02) mission was China’s 66th orbital launch of 2025, putting the nation just two missions away from breaking its annual launch record. Up next is the Shenzhou-21 crewed space mission, scheduled for October 31, which will carry astronauts to China’s Tiangong space station from the Jiuquan spaceport in the Gobi Desert.
With this latest addition, China continues to strengthen its earth observation and mapping capabilities, moving closer to self-sufficiency in satellite imaging and data-driven infrastructure planning.
