China plans 5 new space science satellites

A Long March 4B rocket carrying a new civilian high-resolution mapping satellite "Ziyuan III 02" and two NewSat satellites from Uruguay blasts off at the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in Taiyuan, capital of north China's Shanxi Province, May 30, 2016. [Photo/Xinhua]

BEIJING - China will put into space five new satellites within around five years as part of the country's fast-expanding space science program, a senior scientist said on Wednesday.

The five satellites, including a Sino-European joint mission, will focus on observation of solar activities and their impact on the Earth environment and space weather, analysis of water recycling and probe of black holes, according to Wu Ji, director of the National Space Science Center under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.

They are expected to make major breakthroughs in these fields, Wu said.