Chinese private rocket firm completes 4th launch from sea

A sea-launched version of Ceres I (Remote 4) solid propellent rocket blasted off in East China's Shandong Province at 6:18 pm on Tuesday, sending four satellites into low-Earth orbit (LEO) at an altitude of 850 kilometers. 

The launch was the company's fourth successful sea launch mission, as well as its fifth mission for constructing the "Apocalypse Constellation" commenced by Ceres I series rockets. This launch sent No 33 to 36 satellites of the constellation, according to a statement sent by Galactic Energy to the Global Times on Thursday. 

Apocalypse Constellation is China's first LEO Internet of Things constellation with its first phase comprising 38 satellites; so far 33 satellites have been launched. The constellation features global coverage, low power consumption and low cost, which has been widely used in agriculture, forestry, emergency response, tourism among other sectors.

As of now, Galactic Energy has successfully conducted 15 commercial launch deliveries, accurately placing 58 commercial satellites with different functions into their designated orbits, said the company.