China’s enhanced Zhuque-2E Y1 methane-powered rocket successfully completed its maiden flight, marking a significant milestone in the nation’s private space industry. The rocket lifted off from the Dongfeng Commercial Space Innovation Pilot Zone in the Gobi Desert on Wednesday, carrying two test satellites into orbit.
Developed by LandSpace, a leading Chinese private space launch service provider, the Zhuque-2E Y1—where “E” stands for “Enhanced” and “Y1” denotes the first iteration of the modified version—retains the basic design of its predecessor but boasts several improvements. The rocket’s length has been reduced from 49.5 meters to 47.3 meters to decrease weight, while its liftoff thrust has been increased from 268 tonnes to 282 tonnes.
This enhanced version has a carrying capacity of four tonnes, optimized for placing payloads into a 500-kilometer sun-synchronous orbit. It also showcases advancements such as reducing fueling time to less than 1.5 hours using new technologies, improving engine performance, and enhancing the stability and reliability of rocket flight.
“The Zhuque-2E Y1 has been comprehensively optimized and improved,” LandSpace announced. “It has now officially entered the commercial operation stage for mass delivery to the market.”
This successful launch follows LandSpace’s previous missions with the Zhuque-2 series. Although the initial launch of the ZQ-2 Y1 in December 2022 was unsuccessful, the ZQ-2 Y2 made history in July 2023 as the world’s first methane-propelled rocket to reach orbit. The subsequent ZQ-2 Y3 launch in December 2023 also achieved success, solidifying LandSpace’s position in the competitive space industry.
The success of the Zhuque-2E Y1 highlights China’s growing capabilities in space exploration and the increasing role of private companies in advancing aerospace technology.
Reference(s):
China's modified Zhuque-2 methalox rocket completes maiden flight
cgtn.com
