BANGKOK, Oct. 9 (Xinhua) -- Thailand's second earth observation satellite (THEOS-2) blasted into orbit from the Guiana Space Center in French Guiana on Monday.

A Vega rocket, carrying the satellite, lifted off at 0136 GMT Monday. About an hour later, the THEOS-2 was successfully detached and entered its lower earth orbit.

The ground station will conduct a trial run of the satellite systems for about three months before it becomes fully operational and starts performing earth observation activities, said Supamas Isarabhakdi, Thai minister of Higher Education, Science, Research and Innovations, in a statement.

This mission is a great leap for the country's response to various emergency situations using fresh, detailed and accurate information gathered from the remote sensing services, she added.

Equipped with high-resolution imagery at a level of detail down to 50 centimeters, the 425-kilogram satellite will help provide information for agriculture, water management, urban planning, and natural resource management, according to the Thai Geo-Informatics and Space Technology Development Agency (GISTDA).

The THEOS-2 was initially scheduled to launch last Saturday, but the liftoff was canceled when a technical problem interrupted the countdown in the final minute, the GISTDA said in a separate statement. The THEOS-2 will replace its predecessor, the THEOS-1, which was launched in October 2008 and has now reached the end of its lifespan. Enditem

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