China achieves first controlled recovery of a rocket first stage with sea platform net capture
Space has always been a realm where ambition meets technology, and every new step opens not only new horizons but also new opportunities for launch economics. Reusable rockets are changing the game: instead of expendable designs, an era of returnable stages is arriving, capable of cutting launch costs many times over. China has successfully demonstrated this technology, inscribing its name in the history of world astronautics.
On Friday, China Media Group released exclusive multi‑angle footage of the launch and recovery of the Long March‑10B carrier rocket, marking the first controlled recovery of a rocket first stage in China. The rocket lifted off from the Wenchang Space Launch Site in Hainan Province, southern China, at 12:15 on Friday. Approximately six minutes after stage separation, the first stage returned and was successfully captured by a net on a sea platform – the first such case in the world. Simultaneously, the second stage delivered its payload into the designated orbit.
Developed by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT) under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), the Long March‑10B is a large two‑stage liquid‑fuel rocket with a five‑metre core diameter. It stands about 63 metres tall, has a liftoff thrust of 890 tonnes, and a payload capacity to low Earth orbit in reusable mode of 16 tonnes. During Friday's mission, several key technologies were successfully verified, including configuration optimisation, autogenous methane pressurisation and fuel management with baffled tanks. Critical reusable technologies for the first stage were demonstrated, such as multiple engine restarts, high‑altitude ignition, adaptation to complex aerothermal conditions, high‑precision navigation and control, and the sea‑based net capture and recovery system. The development team plans to continually optimise the rocket's performance and accelerate the refinement of reusable technologies, with a targeted first‑stage test flight under the reusable programme scheduled for the end of this year.
The Long March‑10B is one of the key developments in China's reusable launch vehicle programme, aimed at reducing launch costs and enhancing competitiveness in the international space services market. The successful net capture on a sea platform is a unique solution never before employed by any spacefaring nation. As CCTV+ reports. This launch was the 657th for the Long March rocket series and opens a new chapter in the development of China's space programme, bringing the country closer to a fully reusable transportation system.
