Follow the latest coverage, related explainers and connected technology stories.
China’s Landspace plans to test relaunching the recovered first stage of the Zhuque-3 rocket within six months, after it successfully landed vertically following the rocket’s second flight. The achievement marks the first ground recovery of an orbital rocket stage by a Chinese company, but a long series of tests remains before repeated operations can begin.
The first stage of the Zhuque-3 rocket landed vertically after its second launch from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, while the second stage placed the Honghu 03 satellite into orbit. The achievement marks China’s second recovery of an orbital booster and the third successful landing of an orbital booster on legs worldwide, after SpaceX and Blue Origin.
Orienspace has begun preparations for IPO-related guidance and announced a pre-Series C funding round worth hundreds of millions of yuan to accelerate development of the reusable Gravity-2 rocket. The company aims to prepare the rocket for its first launch in the fourth quarter of 2026, after postponing an earlier target scheduled for late 2025.