A Long March-8 carrier rocket carrying 18 internet satellites blasts off from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site in south China's Hainan Province on April 7, 2026. (Photo by Liu Jianqiu/Xinhua)

WENCHANG, Hainan, April 7 (Xinhua) -- China launched a Long March-8 carrier rocket on Tuesday in the southern island province of Hainan, sending 18 internet satellites into space.

The rocket blasted off at 9:32 p.m. (Beijing Time) from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site. It successfully placed the payloads, the 7th batch of networking satellites for the Qianfan Constellation, into preset orbit.

A Long March-8 carrier rocket carrying 18 internet satellites blasts off from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site in south China's Hainan Province on April 7, 2026. (Photo by Liu Jianqiu/Xinhua)

A Long March-8 carrier rocket carrying 18 internet satellites blasts off from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site in south China's Hainan Province on April 7, 2026. (Photo by Liu Jianqiu/Xinhua)