China launches newest Long March rocket, carrying ‘test satellites’ for broadband networks

The two-stage rocket, powered by burning kerosene and liquid oxygen, is notable as China’s first 3.8-metre-wide rocket

China successfully launched its newest rocket on Saturday, making another step towards stronger launch capabilities and a crewed moon landing before 2030.

The 62-metre-tall, 3.8-metre-wide Long March 12 lifted off from Wenchang spaceport on south China’s Hainan island at 10:25pm Beijing time, sending two “technology test satellites” into orbit, according to the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), the country’s main space contractor.

CASC did not provide more detail about the satellites.

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The two-stage rocket, powered by burning kerosene and liquid oxygen, is notable as the first 3.8-metre-wide rocket launched so far by China, said Wu Jialin, an engineer with the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology under CASC, which developed the spacecraft.

Most Chinese rockets have a diameter of 3.35 meters, Wu told a press conference on site shortly after the launch was announced successful. “A wider body means the rocket can hold about 30 per cent more propellant, giving it much enhanced carrying capacity,” he said.

Long March 12 can deliver about 12 tonnes of payload to low Earth orbit and over 6 tonnes to a so-called sun-synchronous orbit, Wu said. It will join existing rockets to help China assemble its broadband “megaconstellations”.

The planned megaconstellations, called Qianfan and Guowang, each aim to launch more than 13,000 satellites to provide internet services to remote areas and rival SpaceX’s Starlink in the international market.

The flight, which took place from the country’s first commercial launch complex, also tested a key model of rocket engine known as YF-100K, each providing a thrust of 1,250 kilonewtons to power Long March 12’s first stage.

YF-100K engines will also be used to power Long March 10, a rocket under development to send Chinese astronauts to the moon before 2030.

Long March 12 has a lift-off mass of around 430 tons. Its first stage is equipped with four YF-100K engines and the second stage with two YF-115 engines. The Long March 10’s first stage will comprise seven YF-100K engines.

Zeng Wenhua, the rocket’s chief designer, said in February that Long March 12 was designed to be transportable by rail to all of China’s launch sites while “achieving an optimal match between rocket diameter and engine count.”

“The Long March 12 inherits the efficient single-core, series-staged configuration of the current Long March series, characterised by simplicity, reliability, and strong mission versatility,” Zeng told Xinhua news agency at the time.

“It enhances the capability for placing payloads into sun-synchronous orbit and deploying multiple satellite constellations in low Earth orbit, further refining and expanding the range of China’s new-generation carrier rockets,” she said.

The construction of Wenchang’s commercial launch complex started in 2022 with a total investment exceeding 4 billion yuan, according to the project deputy manager Liu Hongjian.

The complex currently consists of two launch pads, each designed to support up to 16 launches per year, Liu told the post-launch press conference.

This article originally appeared on the South China Morning Post (www.scmp.com), the leading news media reporting on China and Asia.

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