China launches two BeiDou-3 satellites aboard carrier rocket

China has launched two BeiDou-3 satellites aboard a Long March 3B carrier rocket, Chinese media have reported. The rocket took off from Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Sichuan province, southwestern China, on Sunday morning. These are the first BeiDou-3 satellites launched by China, which plans to have developed BeiDou as a global navigation system by 2020. "New technology has significantly improved the performance of the BeiDou-3,” said Yang Changfeng, chief designer of the system, as quoted by Xinhua.