Chinese Zhuque-3 rocket successfully lands after orbiting Earth

China has made an important breakthrough in space exploration. Chinese private company LandSpace successfully launched its Zhuque-3 rocket into Earth’s orbit and then landed it back on Earth.

This is the first time a Chinese private company has successfully launched an orbital rocket and landed it in this manner.

Previously, on July 10, the Chinese state-owned China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) also achieved a similar feat with its Long March 10B rocket.

However, the Long March 10B relied on some external assistance during its return to Earth while Zhuque-3 landed upright on its own made possible by its landing legs.

In a statement, LandSpace said this was China’s first mission in which a rocket successfully landed upright using landing legs after launch. The company said the flight was an important test that demonstrated technological progress and confirmed the possibility of repeated rocket use.

The statement added that the mission also verified the rocket’s design and reliability while the recovery and landing of the first stage demonstrated its reusability.

In appearance, Zhuque-3 is similar to SpaceX’s Falcon 9 which first successfully demonstrated post-flight landing in 2015 and has now completed more than 600 such landings.

Both rockets have reusable boosters similar lengths and comparable lifting capabilities. However, the two rockets use different fuels. Falcon 9 uses liquid oxygen and rocket-grade kerosene while Zhuque-3 uses liquid oxygen and liquid methane.

The rocket was launched from the Dongfeng Commercial Space Zone in northwestern China marking the second test flight of the rocket. During the launch, Zhuque-3 reached Earth’s orbit and deployed a satellite into space before returning and successfully landing back on Earth.

The new rocket represents an important step forward for China in developing reusable rockets that can be flown multiple times.