China launches new internet satellite group

A Long March-12 carrier rocket carrying a group of internet satellites blasts off from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site in south China's Hainan Province, Dec. 12, 2025. The rocket lifted off at 7:00 a.m. on Friday. The payloads, the 16th group of low-orbit internet satellites, entered into preset orbit successfully. (Xinhua/Pu Xiaoxu)

WENCHANG, Hainan, Dec. 12 (Xinhua) -- China launched a Long March-12 carrier rocket on Friday in the southern island province of Hainan, sending a group of internet satellites into space.

The rocket lifted off at 7:00 a.m. from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site. The payloads, the 16th group of low-orbit internet satellites, entered into preset orbit successfully.

This long-exposure photo taken on Dec. 12, 2025 shows a Long March-12 carrier rocket carrying a group of internet satellites blasting off from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site in south China's Hainan Province. The rocket lifted off at 7:00 a.m. on Friday. The payloads, the 16th group of low-orbit internet satellites, entered into preset orbit successfully. (Xinhua/Pu Xiaoxu)

A Long March-12 carrier rocket carrying a group of internet satellites blasts off from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site in south China's Hainan Province, Dec. 12, 2025. The rocket lifted off at 7:00 a.m. on Friday. The payloads, the 16th group of low-orbit internet satellites, entered into preset orbit successfully. (Xinhua/Pu Xiaoxu)