New Chinese satellite to help monitor sea surface temperatures and global snow coverage 

China on Monday successfully launched a new meteorological satellite with 11 remote sensing payloads, which besides enhancing the country's weather forecasting capacity, will monitor global snow coverage and sea surface temperatures.

The satellite was launched into planned orbit from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China, state-run Xinhua news agency reported.

Equipped with 11 remote sensing payloads, FY-3E will be the world's first meteorological satellite in early morning orbit for civil service, the report said.

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It is designed with a lifespan of eight years and will mainly obtain the atmospheric temperature, humidity and other meteorological parameters for numerical prediction applications, improving China's weather forecast capacity.

It will also monitor the global snow cover, sea surface temperature, natural disasters and ecology to better respond to climate change and prevent and mitigate meteorological disasters.

In addition, the satellite will monitor solar and space environments and their effects, as well as ionospheric data to meet the needs of space weather forecasts and supporting services, the report said.