China lands reusable rocket in SpaceX-style milestone
What's the story
China has achieved a major milestone in space exploration by successfully landing a rocket during an orbital launch. The historic feat was accomplished with the maiden flight of the Long March 10B on Friday. The first stage of the rocket made a controlled descent and landed on a net-like structure carried by a ship at sea, marking China's first-ever successful recovery of an orbital-class rocket.
Rocket details
About the Long March 10B rocket
The Long March 10B is a two-stage rocket, around 63 meters tall. The first stage uses kerosene and liquid oxygen (LOX) propellants, while the second stage runs on LOX and liquid methane. In its reusable configuration, the Long March 10B can carry up to 16 tons of payload to low Earth orbit. The maiden flight of this rocket successfully delivered a satellite into its predetermined orbit.
Technological advancement
Major breakthrough in reusable rocket technology
The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) announced the successful recovery of the Long March 10B's first stage via social media. They called it "the world's first network-based recovery of a launch vehicle," marking a major breakthrough in reusable rocket technology. The CASC also emphasized that this achievement would lay a solid foundation for improving China's space access capabilities.
Future strategies
Plans to refly recovered 1st stage by end of year
China intends to refly the first stage of the Long March 10B by the end of this year. This plan comes as part of their larger strategy to develop reusable launch systems and significantly cut down on space mission costs. The successful recovery marks a major step toward achieving these goals and closing the gap with other countries in reusable rocket technology.