China’s reusable rocket failed

Long March 12A, designed by the Shanghai Institute of Astronautical Technology of the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), took off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China on the morning of December 23. According to Xinhuathe rocket’s second stage reached its designated orbit, but recovery of the first stage for reuse failed.

Long March 12A is 62 m high, capable of carrying 12 tons of cargo into low Earth orbit (LEO). It was developed from the Long March 12 rocket, which is currently used to launch Internet satellites. While Truong Chinh 12 ran using kerosene oil, version 12A was upgraded to operate on methane and liquid oxygen.

This is the second time this month that China has been unable to recover a reusable rocket stage. Previously, on December 3, the 66 m high two-stage rocket Zhuque-3 of Chinese company LandSpace also took off for the first time from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center to test reusability. About 8 minutes after takeoff, the first stage returned, trying to land at a location 390 km away from Jiuquan. However, this attempt failed when the rocket stage caught fire and crashed onto the edge of the landing pad.

CASC is a Chinese state-owned corporation with more than 100,000 employees and is the main rocket supplier to the country’s space program. Meanwhile, Landspace is a private aerospace company with less than 2,000 employees.

Theo ReutersIn recent years, China has launched dozens of rockets to put satellites into orbit but has not yet successfully tested reusable rockets, which require a larger booster stage below to return and land. While the American aerospace company SpaceX has mastered this technology for many years, Chinese private and state-owned rocket companies are still rushing to test self-developed reusable rockets.

Reusability is key to reducing costs and increasing the frequency of rocket launches, making it easier to get satellites into space. SpaceX’s Falcon 9 reusable rocket has helped the company build the giant Starlink network, which currently includes about 9,300 Internet satellites operating in orbit. Reuters commented that although China has launched hundreds of satellites on LEO in the past few years, the country’s satellite network will not be able to catch up with Starlink without its own reusable rocket version.