China successfully tests rocket propellant recovery system from the sea; VIDEO

China successfully tests recovery of rocket boosters from the sea
China on Friday successfully tested an experimental rocket recovery system using a net attached to a sea platform, state media reported, hoping to break the United States' dominance in reusable rockets.
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The Long March 10B rocket took off from the Hainan commercial space launch center in the southern China at 1:15 a.m. Brasília time (12:15 p.m. local time), and about six minutes after the booster and upper stage separated, the booster returned vertically and was recovered on a sea platform, state broadcaster CCTV reported.
"A historic day for China's space program," Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Mao Ning said of the rocket test. China's share of an orbital-class rocket, bringing the country closer to developing reusable rockets.
Shares of Chinese aerospace companies soared following the news, with China Spacesat and China Satellite Communications hitting their daily upside limits.
The Long March 10B rocket was compared to the Falcon 9, SpaceX's widely used medium-lift rocket. It was developed for the commercial aerospace sector by the country's top state rocket development agency, the Chinese Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, and is capable of carrying a payload of at least 16 metric tons to low-Earth orbit. Long March 10B does not land autonomously on extendable legs on a land platform or drone ship, instead using "landing hooks" to capture the net attached to a sea platform.
In contrast, SpaceX landed a Falcon 9 rocket from an orbital flight for the first time in December 2015, followed by Blue Origin's New Glenn in November 2025.
Currently, SpaceX's Falcon 9 performs about 150 launches per year, or approximately three times per week, with its propellant being reused dozens of times if necessary. The booster, which contains the engine, is generally considered the most valuable part of a rocket.
China has spent nearly a decade developing reusable rocket technologies, from the first low-altitude hover tests to attempts to recover rocket boosters from orbit in recent years. A reusable rocket system will reduce launch costs for China's rapidly expanding commercial satellite constellations.
Chinese private companies are also stepping up efforts to test their reusable rockets amid intense global competition to acquire the technology, and China has relaxed IPO rules for companies developing reusable rockets to help them raise funds.
Two attempts last year by private Chinese firm LandSpace and State-owned China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation failed to complete the crucial final stage of landing and recovery of the booster.
As part of the Long March 10 family, which is being developed for China's manned lunar missions before 2030, the Long March 10B will also be able to provide data and validate technologies relevant to the lunar program in general.
CCTV reported that China plans to again use the Long March 10 rocket booster stage for another launch by the end of this year. year.
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Source: G1