The first Chinese reusable rocket is ready for flight: the engines have been tested (video)

Subscribe so you don't miss the latest and most exciting news from the world of science! LandSpace conducted a static test of the Zhuque-3 rocket's engines while it was docked on the launch pad. During the standard pre-launch check, the engines were started, but the launch of the rocket itself did not take place. The test showed that the engines are working as they should and the rocket is ready for its maiden flight, which should take place by the end of 2025.

LandSpace engineers also refueled the rocket to test the fuel system's efficiency. This test was also successful. Thus, all the preparatory tests of the first Chinese reusable rocket Zhuque-3, which will undergo several more routine checks before the first launch into space, have been completed. After launch, the first stage of the rocket must return to the launch pad.

Over the past year and a half, LandSpace has conducted several key tests of the Zhuque-3 launch vehicle, including a low-altitude takeoff and landing on a launch pad. According to LandSpace, the Zhuque-3 is a low-cost, reusable rocket that is made of stainless steel and runs on liquid fuel. The Zhuque-3 rocket is very similar to SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket, which is also reusable and has a first stage that retracts after launch. The Zhuque-3 first stage, like the Falcon 9, has nine engines.

The Tianque-12A engines of the Zhuque-3 rocket use liquid methane and liquid oxygen as fuel. But the Merlin engines, which are equipped with the SpaceX rocket, use liquid oxygen and kerosene as fuel. At the same time, the Raptor engines of SpaceX's most powerful Starship rocket to date run on liquid oxygen and liquid methane. The height of the Zhuque-3 rocket is 66 meters. It is capable of launching 18. 3 tons of payload, including satellites, into orbit.

At the same time, the Falcon 9 rocket can launch a payload weighing 22. 8 tons into orbit. LandSpace also created the Zhuque-2 disposable rocket. In 2023, it became the first rocket powered by liquid oxygen and liquid methane to enter Earth orbit. As Focus has already written, the Starship rocket can reduce the travel time to Uranus by 2 times, according to scientists. This planet has not been studied from a close distance for 40 years.