Tag: China
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Launch Roundup: Starlink constellation continues to expand while China begins building G60 constellation
Following a busy last two weeks, the pace of the worldwide launch schedule slowed down this week. The first launch of the week saw China launch the initial batch of its G60 internet satellite constellation. If the plans for this expansive constellation are fulfilled, we can expect to see many more of these launches shortly.…
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Launch Roundup: Falcon 9 returns to flight, China launches Earth observation satellites
The launch schedule in the past few weeks had been notably quieter than usual. Last week, a Chang Zheng 4B launched the latest set of Gaofen-11 high-resolution Earth observation satellites in the early hours of Friday, July 19 — the only launch of the week of July 14 through July 20. Following a Falcon 9…
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China Launches Fifth High-Resolution Gaofen-11 Satellite
China successfully launched its fifth Gaofen-11 high-resolution satellite, adding to its China High-resolution Earth Observation System (CHEOS) constellation. The launch occurred late Thursday via a Long March 4B rocket from Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in northern China. The rocket lifted off at 11:03 p.m. Eastern on July 18 (0303 UTC, July 19), carrying the Gaofen-11…
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Rocket Report: Firefly’s CEO steps down; Artemis II core stage leaves factory
Welcome to Edition 7.03 of the Rocket Report! One week ago, SpaceX suffered a rare failure of its workhorse Falcon 9 rocket. In fact, it was the first time the latest version of the Falcon 9, known as the Block 5, has ever failed on its prime mission after nearly 300 launches. The world’s launch…
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Rocket Report: Firefly delivers for NASA; Polaris Dawn launching this month
Welcome to Edition 7.01 of the Rocket Report! We’re compiling this week’s report a day later than usual due to the Independence Day holiday. Ars is beginning its seventh year publishing this weekly roundup of rocket news, and there’s a lot of it this week despite the holiday here in the United States. Worldwide, there…
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Kazakhstan Joins China-led Lunar Research Station, Explores Spaceport Cooperation
During Chinese President Xi Jinping’s recent visit to Kazakhstan on July 3, Kazakhstan signed a memorandum of cooperation with China on the International Lunar Research Station (ILRS). This move, part of a broader set of agreements encompassing 30 documents, marks Kazakhstan’s strategic step towards enhancing space exploration capabilities in collaboration with China. According to a…
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MinoSpace Raises $137 Million to Expand Satellite Production and Technology
MinoSpace, also known as Beijing Weina Star Technology Co., Ltd., announced on June 24 that it has secured more than $137 million in funding, positioning itself as a prominent player in China’s commercial space sector. The funding round was led by Wuxi Economic Development Zone Shangxian Industry Investment Fund, managed by SIP Oriza PE Fund…
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China Roundup: Tianlong-3 static fire anomaly, Chang’e 6 sample return, and next-generation rockets
Throughout the last few weeks, several events in Chinese spaceflight have created international headlines. After launching a Chang Zheng 2C rocket that would later fall onto an inhabited village, a Tianlong-3 rocket was unexpectedly released during a static fire test and would crash in an area close to the launch site. However, not all of…
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Chinese Rocket’s First Stage Detaches During Test, Lands Off-site
Beijing Tianbing Technology Co. reported on Sunday that a structural failure during a test caused the first stage of its Tianlong-3 rocket to detach from its launch pad and land in a hilly area near Gongyi city in central China. The incident, confirmed by Space Pioneer in a statement on its official WeChat account, did…
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Chinese Space Pioneer’s Rocket Test Ends in Catastrophic Failure
Chinese commercial space company Space Pioneer suffered a major setback on Sunday when a test firing of its Tianlong-3 launch vehicle’s first stage ended in a dramatic explosion at a facility in Gongyi county, Henan province. The intended static-fire test, designed to assess the first stage’s readiness for orbital flight, went awry as amateur footage…