SpaceX and the 7 dwarves: Chinese space firms line up to enter reusable rocket race

Name: China beats SpaceX with world’s first methane-powered rocket launch
Uploaded: 2024-12-12T05:04:47.000Z
Duration: 1 min 27 s
Description: China beats SpaceX with world’s first methane-powered rocket launch

Chinese rocket companies ramp up efforts to close the gap with SpaceX while hoping to replicate its success with reusable rockets

Reading Time:2 minutes

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China’s Tianlong-3 reusable rocket is similar in design and performance to SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. Photo: Weibo

Ling Xinin Ohio

Published: 1:04pm, 12 Dec 2024Updated: 2:24pm, 12 Dec 2024

Chinese space launch start-ups are racing to debut their reusable rockets next year, driven by the nation’s push to build internet megaconstellations in low-Earth orbit (LEO) in a challenge to SpaceX’s Starlink.

At least seven new private rockets, all featuring vertical recovery and reusability, are aiming to reach orbit in 2025 and compete for launch contracts to deploy tens of thousands of broadband satellites in the coming years.

Leading the charge is the Tianlong-3, a 71-metre (233-feet), two-stage kerosene and liquid oxygen rocket being assembled by Space Pioneer in Zhangjiagang, Jiangsu province, in eastern China.

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China beats SpaceX with world’s first methane-powered rocket launch

The Tianlong-3 is the second most powerful rocket developed in China, surpassed only by the Long March-5B. With a payload capacity of 17 tonnes for LEO, it is designed for batch satellite deployments and could carry 30 or more satellites per launch, Jiangsu Television reported on Sunday.

The rocket, which had an unexpected launch and crash during a static fire test in June, has incorporated a suite of advanced technologies, according to Liu Yang, an engineer at Space Pioneer.

“These technologies, including 3D-printed stainless steel engines and liquid nitrogen gasification pressurisation, were developed specifically to meet the ‘low-cost, high-reliability and high-frequency’ demands of internet satellite launches,” Liu told Jiangsu Television.

The first stage of the Tianlong-3 is powered by nine Tianhuo-12 engines and can be used up to 10 times, according to the company’s website.

Hot on the Tianlong-3’s heels is the Zhuque-3, a medium-lift reusable rocket being developed by LandSpace in Huzhou, Zhejiang province. The Zhuque-3 is the only one of the seven set to attempt both orbital insertion and first-stage recovery during its maiden flight next year.