China Aerospace Science and Technology CorporationLong March 4BLaunch Complex 9, Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China
Ziyuan-3-04
Launched
December 16, 2025 · 03:17 UTC
Image: CASC
Summary
Ziyuan-3-04 launched on a China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation Long March 4B from Launch Complex 9, Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China on December 16, 2025 at 03:17 UTC. The launch window ran from 03:10 to 03:39 UTC. It was China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation's 564th launch, 63rd this year and humanity's 7,156th orbital launch attempt. It was the 55th Long March 4B flight and the 3rd this year. The payload was bound for Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO). Zi Yuan 3-04, one of 2 catalogued objects, reached a 491 × 507 km orbit inclined 97.5°. 2 objects from this launch are catalogued, one of them a payload.
- Watch
- No webcast on record.
- Booster
- No booster details on record.
- Mission
- Earth Science · Sun-Synchronous Orbit (SSO)
- Milestone
- 55th Long March 4B flight · 3rd this yearChina Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation's 564th launch63rd this yearhumanity's 7,156th orbital launch attempt307th orbital launch attempt this year
Flight preview
Orbit: as tracked
Zi Yuan 3-04 · NORAD 67131 · 2025-300 · Space-Track · tracking 1 of 2 objects
Show the numbers for orbit elements
- Object
- ZY 3 04
- Object ID
- 2025-300A
- Epoch
- 2025-12-16 05:54:33 UTC
- Mean motion
- 15.24627585 rev/day
- Eccentricity
- 0.0011082
- Inclination
- 97.5012°
- Ascending node
- 64.3338°
- Arg. of perigee
- 268.6179°
- Mean anomaly
- 91.3789°
- Element set
- 999
- Rev at epoch
- 2
- B*
- 0.000083268042
Perigee, apogee and period are Kepler figures from the catalogued mean elements, not a propagated state. Published orbit: SSO. Ascent drawn from padside's representative profile.
Catalogued objects
2 catalogued: 1 payload, 1 rocket stage; 1 still in orbit
- Zi Yuan 3-04 · NORAD 67131 · in orbit
CZ-4B Y61 Stage 3 · re-entered March 17, 2026
Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org
About this launch
The ZY-3 (Ziyuan-3, 'Resource-3') series represents China's first high-resolution, stereoscopic mapping satellites for civilian use. The second satellite is managed by the Satellite Surveying and Mapping Application Center (SASMAC). The imaging payload consists of a three-line camera array and a multispectral imager. The three-line panchromatic camera array to acquire stereoscopic imagery consists of three telescopic cameras with one oriented to the nadir and the other two each offset by 22° forward and backward in flight direction. The stereo mapping camera of ZY-3 has a resolution of 2.1 m for the nadir camera, and 2.6 m for the offset cameras. The swath width is 51 km. The multispectral imager for environmental and vegetation monitoring consists of a three-mirror telescope and a cooled detector system sensitive to four wavelength bands to capture full-color imagery as well as near-infrared data. The ground resolution of this system is 5.8 m.
Pad
Launch Complex 9, Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China
77th launch from Launch Complex 9, 1st this year · 149th from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China
Local pad time at liftoff: Dec 16, 11:17 AM GMT+8, in daylight
80 launches from this pad · 162 from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China
364 days after the previous launch from this pad
All launches from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of ChinaOpen in maps
Updates
Launch success.
Show 1 earlier update
Added launch per NOTAMs; Payload and launch vehicle identities uncertain.
Cosmic_Penguin · 12/12/2025 · source
Questions
When did Ziyuan-3-04 launch?
Ziyuan-3-04 launched on December 16, 2025 at 03:17 UTC. The launch window ran from 03:10 to 03:39 UTC.
Where can I watch Ziyuan-3-04?
No webcast is on record for this launch.
What rocket launched Ziyuan-3-04?
Long March 4B, flown by China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation. Long March 4B spec sheet
Where did Ziyuan-3-04 launch from?
Launch Complex 9, Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China. Liftoff was Dec 16, 11:17 AM GMT+8 local time at the pad.
What orbit did Ziyuan-3-04 reach?
Zi Yuan 3-04, one of 2 catalogued objects, reached a 491 × 507 km orbit inclined 97.5°.
How many satellites did Ziyuan-3-04 launch?
1 payload from this launch is catalogued, still in orbit (Data from J. McDowell, planet4589.org).