A Long March 12 rocket successfully placed China’s 29th group of low-Earth-orbit internet satellites into its intended orbit on November 9, 2026. Liftoff occurred at 4:24 a.m. Beijing time from the Hainan commercial space launch site, equivalent to 20:24 UTC on November 8.
China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation confirmed the successful deployment. The company identified its Fifth Academy as the organization responsible for developing the satellites. The mission was the 676th launch of the Long March rocket family.
For the launch, Long March 12 provided the transportation from the Hainan site to orbit. CASC describes the rocket as a single-core vehicle using cryogenic liquid propellants. Its published specifications for this mission give an overall length of approximately 62 meters.
The manufacturer states a payload capability of at least six metric tons to a 700-kilometer sun-synchronous orbit. This is a reference performance specification for the launch vehicle. The mission announcement identifies the delivered payload as an internet-satellite group in low Earth orbit.
Long March 12 supports payload fairings measuring 4.2 or 5.2 meters in diameter. The fairing encloses the payload during atmospheric flight. The available configurations accommodate single-satellite and multiple-satellite missions.
The rocket and its launch site began orbital operations together. On November 30, 2024, Long March 12 made its maiden flight from the Hainan commercial facility and delivered two experimental satellites to their planned orbits.
That flight was also the commercial launch site’s first mission. The November 2026 deployment continues the use of the same rocket family and facility for orbital transportation, with the latest internet-satellite group successfully delivered to its assigned orbit.
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