China has become the second country after the United States to demonstrate reliable reusable rocket technology, after the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation successfully recovered the first stage of its Long March-10B rocket on its maiden flight on July 10.
The 63-metre rocket lifted off from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in Hainan and delivered a satellite to its intended orbit. Six minutes after separation, the booster descended vertically onto the offshore recovery vessel Pioneer, using what the aerospace group described as the world's first rope-net capture system. The platform was built by Guangzhou Shipyard International in partnership with the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Institute of Deep-Sea Science and Engineering.
In reusable mode, the two-stage rocket—powered by liquid oxygen-kerosene and liquid oxygen-methane engines—can carry up to 16 tonnes to low-Earth orbit, placing it on par with SpaceX's Falcon 9.