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LandSpace recovers Zhuque-3 booster after orbital launch
The 66-metre Zhuque-3 successfully delivered a Honghu-3 internet satellite, then brought its first stage back vertically to a recovery site in Gansu.
China’s commercial rocket company LandSpace recovered a stainless-steel booster after an orbital launch, a milestone aimed at reducing the cost of space access through reusability.
The successful mission made LandSpace’s Zhuque-3 the first Chinese commercial rocket to both reach orbit and recover its first stage. SpaceX’s Super Heavy booster, also made of stainless steel, is awaiting US Federal Aviation Administration approval for its first recovery flight, according to the report.
LandSpace’s 66-metre rocket, powered by liquid methane and oxygen, lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in China’s Gobi Desert at 7.35am on Wednesday, Xinhua reported. It delivered a Honghu-3 internet satellite to its designated orbit before the first stage returned to Earth and touched down vertically at a recovery site in Minqin county, Gansu province, about 390 km southeast of the launch pad.
The outlet also noted that LandSpace became the fourth entity, after SpaceX, Blue Origin, and China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, to recover a launch vehicle.