The Long March-3B carrier rocket was launched off Xichang Satellite Launch Center with the 33th and 34th satellites of the Beidou navigation system, Xinhua news agency reported.
The first stage of the Beidou system was decommissioned in 2012. The second stage began work in 2011, while in 2015 China began working on the third generation system. Beidou-3 is expected to include 35 satellites and to provide services globally upon completion in 2020.
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Earlier this year, the China National Space Administration reported a successful launch of a communications satellite to the far side of the moon. The payload was carried into space by the Long March-4C model rocket from Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwestern China, CNSA announced. The rocket also carried two microsatellites, to perform their own radio-astronomy research, according to Space.com.
