China on Thursday launched a Long March-2D rocket to place a group of eight satellites in space.

Satellite Jilin-1 Kuanfu 01C, together with seven Jilin-1 Gaofen 03D satellites, was lifted at 10:38 a.m. (Beijing Time) from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in the northern province of Shanxi and soon entered the preset orbit.

Jilin-1 Kuanfu 01C will be used to provide commercial remote sensing data services for sectors such as land resource, mineral exploration and smart city construction.

Developed by Chang Guang Satellite Technology Co., Ltd., the eight new satellites will work with 46 previously launched satellites of the Jilin-1 family to form a constellation, providing remote sensing data and services in fields like agriculture, forestry and environmental protection.

This was the 419th flight mission of the Long March rocket series.