New U.S.-European satellite launched to monitor sea levels

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 16 (Xinhua) -- A new satellite developed by NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) was launched on Sunday night to track sea levels across more than 90 percent of the world's oceans.

The ocean-monitoring satellite, named Sentinel-6B, was launched on a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket from Vandenberg Space Force Base in the U.S. state of California at 9:21 p.m. Pacific Time (0521 GMT).

Orbiting Earth every 112 minutes at about 7.2 km per second, Sentinel-6B will eventually succeed its twin, Sentinel-6 Michael Freilich -- launched five years ago -- continuing a decades-long record of sea level measurements from space, according to NASA.

Data collected by the mission, along with atmospheric observations, will support public safety, urban planning and the protection of coastal infrastructure such as power plants and defense facilities. Enditem