New Rockets & Reusable Rockets Progress Toward Launch
China's space sector has been busy during and after the Zhuhai Airshow, continuing work on various rockets and signing international agreements.
China’s space sector has had a very busy past few weeks with various new rockets progressing toward launch this year, reusable launch vehicles making steady progress, and of course the Zhuhai Airshow. All of which will be covered to catch up with the sector’s activity.
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Zhuque-2E to launch on November 27th
Rollout video via LandSpace on Weibo.
LandSpace has rolled out its Zhuque-2E Y1 vehicle to Launch Area 96 ahead of its maiden flight in the coming days, expected on November 27th based on NOTAMs.
Comprehensive details on differences between Zhuque-2 and Zhuque-2E have not been shared but the most major is a new second-stage is stated as utilizing a common bulkhead design along with replacing the TQ-12 engine and four TQ-11 vernier thrusters with a single TQ-15A vacuum-optimized engine. A comparison image put together by ASPT on Weibo has Zhuque-2E being slightly shorter, this is likely due to the use of common bulkheads for the new second-stage.
Following the maiden flight, LandSpace is planning to conduct routine launch missions having said the following upon announcing Zhuque-2E:
"The successful success of this second-stage static ignition test marks the full validation of LandSpace's new second-stage programme for the Zhuque-2E, providing important data support and technical assurance for LandSpace to conduct the first flight test mission of the Zhuque-2E model and the regular launch mission."
Previous flights of Zhuque-2 occurred six months apart and are thought to have been test flights. The switch to using a TQ-15A engine will allow the second-stage to reignite, opening up a wider range of missions not previously possible and strengthening LandSpace’s market position. More frequent flights will also bolster flight data for the TQ-12A and TQ-15A engines, which will also be used on the partially reusable Zhuque-3, set to debut around the middle of 2025.
Long March 12 may debut on November 30th
The Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology’s Long March 12 launch vehicle is finally believed to be near launch, according to NOTAMs and ticket sales for watching a launch on November 30th. Launch of the vehicle was previously expected in August, prior to Super-Typhoon Yagi hitting Hainan province.
Last month saw the Long March 12 conduct testing at Commercial Launch Pad 2, which is believed to have involved most major elements for an operational launch. Much of that testing was also for ensuring various repairs and fixes were successful following Yagi.
The debut flight of the Long March 12 will be providing the first flight of the YF-100K engine, which is a largely improved version of the YF-100F and boasts a ~5-tons of thrust improvement along with a lower mass and wider thrust range, these engines will also power the Long March 10 Moon rocket. A few other firsts will also be achieved for the Long March 12’s first flight. Notably, the diameter of the vehicle is 3.8 meters, making it wider than the usual 3.35 meters of almost all Long March launch vehicles. A 5.2-meter fairing may also be used during the debut mission, becoming the largest non-inline fairing to be used on a Long March vehicle.
iSpace begins work on Hainan factory and drone ship
iSpace announced on November 16th that it had broken ground on its Hainan factory and offices, with representatives from the company’s Beijing headquarters and Hainan subsidiary along with officials for Wenchang and Hainan attending the groundbreaking ceremony.
The Hainan facility represents an investment of 540 million Yuan, or approximately 74.5 million United States Dollars (at the time of writing on November 23rd), to support at least thirty-six launches of the Hyperbola-3 rocket series per year. iSpace’s Hainan facility is planned to consist of a suborbital and upper-stage special factory, a machine processing factory, a production workshop, three first-stage production and refurbishment factories, and a support building. Once complete the facility will occupy an area of approximately ninety acres.
Hainan factory and office fly-through video via iSpace on WeChat.
A few days after breaking ground on the Hainan facility, iSpace also announced work had begun on the company’s first drone ship. This drone ship will be used as a floating landing platform for the first-stage booster recovery, necessary for non-return to launch site missions of Hyperbola-3 from the Wenchang Commercial Space Launch Site.
The drone ship will have a displacement of 10,000 tons once sea-faring and make iSpace the owner of the fifth ship meant for booster recovery, Blue Origin owns one and SpaceX owns three, having decommissioned one as well. Production of the ship is planned to be in partnership with Shanghai Chunhe Marine Technology Group (上海春和海洋科技集团有限公司) and Jiangsu Runyang Shipbuilding (江苏润扬船业有限公司).
iSpace was previously thought to be facing financial difficulties following multiple failures of its solid-powered Hyperbola-1 launch vehicle, these rumors have since died down following further development on Hyperbola-3 along with the investments mentioned above.
CAS Space performs Kinetica-2 fairing test
CAS Space announced on November 21st that it had completed a fairing separation test using a hinge-less design for its Kinetica-2 payload fairing. The dimensions of the fairing were stated as being 4.2 meters in diameter and 12.19 meters in length while being made of a carbon composite material.
This separation test is stated as confirming the design of the fairing, the process of hinge-less separation, and the coordination of all separation systems. CAS Space’s reasoning for using a hinge-less system is to reduce the chance of the fairing contacting either the payloads or the payload adapter, which is why they have opted for pneumatic pushers for separation. These pneumatic pushers can also have their force adjusted depending on the mission.
In sharing the test on X, formerly Twitter, the company stated the following:
“We have completed the horizontal fairing jettison test for Kinetica-2. The composite fusiform-shaped fairing has a diameter of 4.2m and is 12.19m tall. The design allows a half or full separation, and both options have been successfully tested. The design avoids hinges, and the low-shock gas thrusters instead of pyrotechnics provide the separation force. This also marks the first domestic such test in the ground environment.”
Tianzhou-7 deploys CubeSat
The Tianzhou-7 cargo resupply spacecraft deployed the Bayi-08 CubeSat on November 16th, after undocking from Tiangong on the 10th and before reentry on the 17th.
Bayi-08 is stated as being a 6U CubeSat weight 10.1 kilograms with two small solar unfoldable panels. The satellite is equipped with a 3.5-meter resolution camera for Earth observation along with an optical communication payload. Radio communication as well as audio and video downlink payloads are also onboard.
Development of the satellite was led by Changguang Satellite Technology (长光卫星技术股份有限公司) with the participation of Nanjing Mechanical and Electrical Vocational and Technical College (南京机电职业技术学院) and Wenhai Middle School (文海中学) in Hangzhou, among others, for the purposes of educational outreach and encouraging students to pursue a career in China’s growing space sector.
Chang’e 8 to carry Pakistani rover
Pakistan’s space agency, SUPARCO, announced on November 14th that it will send a small rover to the lunar surface aboard the Chang’e 8 mission, set to occur in 2028.
The rover is expected to weigh 35 kilograms and conduct experiments for studying lunar soil, mapping the lunar surface, and testing technologies for possible human missions. After being delivered to the lunar surface the rover will operate around the Moon’s south pole.
According to Arab News, part of SUPARCO’s official statement on the rover is as follows:
“SUPARCO’s rover, with an approximate weight of 35 kilograms, will join China’s Chang’e 8 mission, which is part of the larger International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) project,” — “This collaboration marks a significant milestone for Pakistan’s space program, as SUPARCO’s indigenous rover will be part of the mission to explore the lunar surface.” — “This collaboration with China highlights the strong bilateral relations between the two countries and their shared vision for space exploration”
Pakistan also contributed to the Chang’e 6 mission with the ICUBE-Q lunar orbiting satellite to image the lunar surface, research the Moon’s magnetic field, and to study the feasibility of using CubeSats for deep space exploration.
Back at the Zhuhai Airshow
The 2024 Zhuhai Airshow, also known as the China International Aviation & Aerospace Exhibition (中国国际航空航天博览会), took place from November 12th to the 17th, during which various companies part of China’s space sector attended.
Some of the companies attending included Deep Blue Aerospace, Galactic Energy, OrienSpace, LandSpace, CAS Space, and various state-owned launch and satellite enterprises. CGTN also released a brief ‘vlog’ quickly highlighting some of the attending companies.
Thank you to Brie for helping me find and figure out what was discussed at the Zhuhai Airshow this year, I did not follow the news around it closely due to a lengthy university assignment.
Qianfan goes international
The most fascinating thing to come out of the Zhuhai Airshow was a talk by Shanghai Spacecom Satellite Technology, sometimes called SpaceSail, the operator of the Qianfan (千帆) constellation. This talk outlined plans to offer internet services internationally using the constellation.
Part of these plans would have the constellation sign agreements with Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Oman, Malaysia, Pakistan, and Brazil in 2024 to offer internet services in the coming years. In 2025 the constellations operator plans to have thirty countries signed on, with more to follow in 2026 throughout Africa, Central Asia, and South America.
Not long after these plans were made public, Brazil signed an agreement with China’s National Data Administration and Shanghai Spacecom Satellite Technology on November 19th. The Qianfan constellation will help provide connectivity to Brazil’s most remote regions while dislodging SpaceX’s Starlink forty-seven percent market share to a more predictable partner, following Elon Musk’s (SpaceX’s Chief Executive Officer) dispute with the country’s new left-leaning government.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (习近平) was also in Brazil at the same time for the G20 summit, during which he met Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and gifted the president a piece of the Moon’s far side from the Chang’e 6 mission.
Long March 9 update
The most headline-grabbing launch vehicle update at Zhuhai was a display of the Long March 9 in its fully reusable configuration. Few details were known about how both stages of the Long March 9 would be recovered until the airshow. While the airshow was happening a concept render was also released of the first-stage being caught on a moving rail system while the upper-stage headed for a landing pad and deployed legs from inside its engine section.
Chen Ziyu, a designer at the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology who is developing the Long March 9, said the following about the vehicle to China Central Television:
“The heavy-lift rocket has a capacity of 100 tons to low Earth orbit and 50 tons to lunar transfer orbit, which can cover the launch needs of various space missions from low orbit to deep space exploration,” — “Our ultimate goal is to have a two-stage fully reusable configuration. And different configurations can be adapted to the launch needs of missions to different orbits”
Reusing both stages would allow for greatly reduced costs for placing large spacecraft into orbit. Some missions won’t be within the requirements of the two-stage reuse configuration, for which plans to expend second and third stages exist.
The first flight of the Long March 9 with first-stage reuse is expected in 2030, while the two-stage reusable configuration is expected to debut between 2033 and 2035.
The two major uses China has for Long March 9 are to support a growing presence on and around the Moon, and for building space-based solar power facilities in Earth orbit. China is currently heading the International Lunar Research Station to try and build up a permanent presence on the Moon to perform science, which the Long March 9 will be used to expand. The country is also looking to develop space-based solar power stations around the altitude of geostationary orbit to generate clean power for China’s goal of carbon neutrality by 2060.
Long March 10A update
The Long March 10A, the single-core two-stage version of the Long March 10 Moon rocket, also got a brief update during the airshow. During the Tianzhou-8 launch broadcast and at the airshow it was stated that the vehicle would conduct low-altitude tests in 2025. Operational launches would be expected to follow later in the year or in 2026.
It is unknown what specifically was meant by low-altitude tests but it could range from hop tests, like those performed by LandSpace and other state-owned launch providers, or systems testing of vehicle on the launchpad. Existing recovery plans for the Long March 10A have the first-stage booster caught on 'tensioned wires' to save weight and to simplify refurbishment, it is unknown how or where this system would be tested for a hop test.
