China Smart Dragon-3 Commercial Rocket Launches 7 Satellites by Sea

China Smart Dragon-3 Commercial Rocket Launches 7 Satellites by Sea

The Smart Dragon-3 (SD-3) commercial rocket blasted off at 2:37 p.m. (Beijing Time), February 12, 2026, from waters off the coast of Yangjiang in south China's Guangdong Province. The seven satellites include Pakistan's PRSC-EO2 satellite.

(Notice the rocket's cooling tiles that are shed after liftoff by design when they are no longer needed.)

Thursday's launch was an important achievement of China-Pakistan space cooperation. The PRSC-EO2 satellite is equipped with high-resolution optical payloads. The remote sensing data it acquires will serve Pakistan in a variety of fields, such as land mapping, environmental and natural disaster monitoring, and natural resource protection.

The offshore launch mission was carried out by the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center (TSLC).

This is the fourth time that the SD-3 rocket has undertaken a commercial launch mission with multiple satellites onboard, showcasing its core advantages in payload adaptability, application scenarios and commercial service capabilities.

Smart Dragon has the capability to deliver 1,560 kg to a 500 km Sun-synchronous orbit. Smart Dragon-3 has a length of approximately 31 meters with a weight of 140 tons at liftoff.

The Jielong-3 rocket was developed by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT), a subsidiary of the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), the country’s state-owned main space contractor. The four-stage rocket is operated by China Rocket Co. Ltd., a commercial spinoff from CASC.

Credit: CASC

Duration: 35 seconds

Date: Feb. 12, 2026

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