China on Wednesday sent a new data transmission satellite into orbit from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in southwest China's Sichuan Province. The Tianlian II-03 satellite was launched early by a Long March 3B carrier rocket. Tianlian II-03, the second generation of China's geosynchronous data transmission satellite, will provide data transmission, telemetry, tracking and command services for manned spacecraft and low and medium orbit resource satellites. It will also support telemetry, tracking and command services needed to launch spacecraft.