China launched its new S-SAR01 satellite aboard a Long March-2C rocket from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in north China's Shanxi Province early Thursday.

By obtaining 5-meter resolution S-band radar image data, the satellite will support disaster prevention, reduction, relief and environmental protection, the China National Space Administration said.

It will also serve natural resources, water conservancy, agriculture, forestry, earthquakes and other fields, the agency added. 

The Ministry of Emergency Management and the Ministry of Ecology and Environment are primary users of the satellite, which has entered the preset orbit. 

Thursday's launch marked the 443rd mission conducted by the Long March rocket series.

(Cover: A Long March-2C rocket carrying the S-SAR01 satellite blasts off from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in north China's Shanxi Province, October 13, 2022. /CFP)