A rocket designed by Beijing university students lifted off from the Jiuquan Launch Center in northwestern China's Gansu Province on Thursday evening, June 12, 2008. [Beijing Daily]

A rocket designed by Beijing university students lifted off on Thursday evening from the Jiuquan Launch Center in northwestern China's Gansu Province.

The "Beihang 1B"successfully collected data from the middle atmosphere from a height of about 10,000 meters, the Beijing Daily newspaper reported on Thursday.

Six minutes after the launch, rocket debris was collected by researchers.

The "Beihang 1B" is an upgraded version of "Beihang 1," which was launched in 2006.

"Beihang 1" is the first undergraduate-made rocket in China; "Beihang 1B" was made by the same research team.

(Xinhua News Agency June 13, 2008)