Landspace to attempt 2nd Zhuque-3 booster landing August 10 2026
Technology
Landspace, a Chinese commercial launch company, is trying again to land its Zhuque-3 rocket booster on August 10, 2026.
Their first attempt last year made it to orbit but ended with the booster exploding during landing, so all eyes are on this second shot.
Zhuque-3 carries 18,300kg to LEO
Zhuque-3 stands 66 meters tall and uses methane-liquid-oxygen engines, letting it carry up to 18,300kg to low Earth orbit, pretty much on par with SpaceX's Falcon 9.
This is China's fourth try at recovering an orbital booster; they just had their first successful landing with the Long March 10B last month.
Landspace conducted a successful static fire test on June 29 and will launch from Jiuquan spaceport in northwest China.