China launches Zhuque-3, achieving its first rocket recovery on land

The Zhuque-3 Y2 rocket blasts off at the Dongfeng commercial space innovation pilot zone in northwest China, Aug. 19, 2026. China launched the reusable rocket Zhuque-3 on Wednesday morning, achieving its first recovery of a rocket's first stage on land. The land-based recovery of the rocket's first stage was completed as planned, and the flight mission was a complete success. (Photo by Wang Jiangbo/Xinhua) JIUQUAN, Aug. 19 (Xinhua) -- China launched the reusable rocket Zhuque-3 on Wednesday morning, achieving its first recovery of a rocket's first stage on land. The Zhuque-3 Y2 rocket blasted off at 7:35 a.m. (Beijing Time) from the Dongfeng commercial space innovation pilot zone in northwest China. The land-based recovery was completed as planned, with the rocket's first stage touching down smoothly at the designated position in the recovery site. The second stage sent the onboard Honghu-03 satellite into preset orbit. The flight mission was a complete success. This mission followed the successful sea-based net recovery of the Long March-10B's first stage on July 10. It marked China's first successful land-based controlled recovery of a rocket's first stage using deployable landing legs, highlighting a major breakthrough in the country's reusable rocket technology. Zhuque-3, developed by Chinese commercial aerospace company LandSpace, is approved by the China National Space Administration as a new-generation liquid oxygen-methane-powered rocket for low-cost, high-capacity and high-frequency launches. The launch vehicle adopts a single-core, two-stage configuration, with an overall length of 66.1 meters. It features a body diameter of 4.5 meters for both stages, and a 5.2-meter-diameter payload fairing. Its major structure is made of stainless steel, with its methane tank placed above the liquid oxygen tank, keeping the center of gravity optimally balanced during the flight. Its first stage is powered by nine TQ-12A liquid oxygen-methane engines, with thrust adjustable from 40 percent to 110 percent of rated power. Industry experts believe the successful validation of Zhuque-3's technical approach, combining liquid oxygen-methane propulsion, stainless steel body, as well as vertical landing and recovery, will help accelerate the deployment of China's low-Earth-orbit satellite constellation. The Zhuque-3 Y2 rocket blasts off at the Dongfeng commercial space innovation pilot zone in northwest China, Aug. 19, 2026. China launched the reusable rocket Zhuque-3 on Wednesday morning, achieving its first recovery of a rocket's first stage on land. The land-based recovery of the rocket's first stage was completed as planned, and the flight mission was a complete success. (Photo by Wang Jiangbo/Xinhua) The Zhuque-3 Y2 rocket blasts off at the Dongfeng commercial space innovation pilot zone in northwest China, Aug. 19, 2026. China launched the reusable rocket Zhuque-3 on Wednesday morning, achieving its first recovery of a rocket's first stage on land. The land-based recovery of the rocket's first stage was completed as planned, and the flight mission was a complete success. (Photo by Wang Jiangbo/Xinhua) The Zhuque-3 Y2 rocket blasts off at the Dongfeng commercial space innovation pilot zone in northwest China, Aug. 19, 2026. China launched the reusable rocket Zhuque-3 on Wednesday morning, achieving its first recovery of a rocket's first stage on land. The land-based recovery of the rocket's first stage was completed as planned, and the flight mission was a complete success. (Photo by Wang Jiangbo/Xinhua)