Russia launched an earth-mapping satellite into space on Thursday from its cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, Russian news agencies reported.

The Resource-DK satellite blasted off aboard a Soyuz-U booster rocket from the Baikonur cosmodrome at 12:09 Moscow time (0809 GMT), Alexei Kuznetsov, the spokesperson for the Russian Space Troops, was quoted as saying.

The satellite separated from the rocket nine minutes later and began an independent flight. It is expected to reach orbit in two days.

The satellite is designed for resource management and environmental monitoring.

(Xinhua News Agency June 17, 2006)