China Achieves First Land-Based Rocket Stage Recovery with Zhuque-3

China successfully recovered the first stage of the reusable Zhuque-3 rocket on land for the first time, marking a major milestone in its commercial space program.

Key points

• The Zhuque-3 Y2 rocket lifted off from the Dongfeng commercial space innovation pilot zone in northwest China.
• The mission marks China's first controlled land-based recovery utilizing deployable landing legs.
• This follows an earlier test on July 10 where a Long March-10B rocket stage was recovered at sea using a net-capture system.

Why it matters

This successful land-based rocket recovery represents a significant technological leap for China's commercial space sector, moving closer to reusable rocket capabilities that can help reduce launch costs.