Chinese Reusable Space Vehicle

Overview

Destination: Low Earth Orbit
Mission: Government/Top Secret

Low Earth Orbit Launch Area 91 (SLS-1 / 921) Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

Note: Launch time is approximate. Probable reflight of the Chinese spaceplane capable of returning to Earth, which flew in orbit September 4 - 6, 2020.

Updates

Cosmic_Penguin • Aug. 4, 2022, 7:20 p.m.

Launch success officially confirmed.


Cosmic_Penguin • Aug. 2, 2022, 6:32 p.m.

Added launch based on NOTAMs; may have very high uncertainty.


Long March 2F/G

Family:
Configuration: F/G

The Long March 2F is a Chinese orbital carrier rocket, part of the Long March 2 rocket family. Designed to launch the crewed Shenzhou spacecraft, the Long March 2F is a human-rated two-stage version of the Long March 2E rocket, which in turn was based on the Long March 2C launch vehicle. It is launched from complex SLS at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center. The Long March 2F/G version includes longer boosters for increased lift capability, among other improvements.

Specifications
  • Stages
    2
  • Length
    62.0 m
  • Diameter
    3.35 m
  • Fairing Diameter
  • Launch Mass
    464.0 T
  • Thrust
Family
  • Name
    Long March 2F/G
  • Family
  • Variant
    F/G
  • Alias
  • Full Name
    Long March 2F/G
Payload Capacity
  • Launch Cost
  • Low Earth Orbit
    8399.0 kg
  • Geostationary Transfer Orbit
  • Direct Geostationary
  • Sun-Synchronous Capacity

Chinese Reusable Space Vehicle


Active Cargo Unmanned
Destination: Low Earth Orbit
Serial Number: None

First Chinese reusable spacecraft, apparently a spaceplane with wings per a photo taken by a US satellite. No public information of it is available. Its official name is "Chongfu Shiyong Shiyan Hangtian Qi", meaning "Reusable Experimental Spacecraft". Note: It is unknown how many flight vehicles have been built and flown.

Chinese Reusable Space Vehicle Details

China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation

China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation

(CASC)

Chairman & President: Lei Fanpei Founded: 1999 Successes: 599 Failures: 16 Pending: 9

Agency Type:

The China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) is the main contractor for the Chinese space program. It is state-owned and has a number of subordinate entities which design, develop and manufacture a range of spacecraft, launch vehicles, strategic and tactical missile systems, and ground equipment. It was officially established in July 1999 as part of a Chinese government reform drive, having previously been one part of the former China Aerospace Corporation. Various incarnations of the program date back to 1956.

INFO WIKI
The Launch Pad

China Spaceplane Lands After Record 276 Days In Orbit

China’s secretive reusable spaceplane has completed its second mission, successfully landing on May 8th after spending 276 days in orbit.

SpaceNews

China’s spaceplane conducted proximity and capture maneuvers with subsatellite, data suggests

China’s secretive spaceplane may have performed multiple recaptures of an object it released into orbit during its recently completed second flight as part of on-orbit testing.

NASASpaceflight

China launches resupply mission, lands space plane, and readies methane rocket

China plans to continue its ongoing supply chain for the Tiangong Space Station (TSS) by launching the Tianzhou-6 mission. The launch occurred at 13:25 UTC on May 10 and lofted a Tianzhou capsule on top of a Chang Zheng 7 (Long March 7).

SpaceNews

China’s mystery reusable spaceplane lands after 276 days in orbit

China’s secretive reusable spaceplane completed its second mission Monday, landing after 276 days in orbit.

SpaceNews

China’s mystery spaceplane releases object into orbit

China’s secretive reusable spaceplane has released an object into orbit, according to tracking data from the U.S. Space Force.

Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

Launch Area 91 (SLS-1 / 921)


Long March 2D
Success
12 hours, 14 minutes ago
PIESAT-2 13-16
Launch Complex 9 - Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

4 X-band synthetic-aperture radar Earth observation satellites for the Chinese Earth observation satellite company PIESAT.


Electron
Success
19 hours, 42 minutes ago
Owl By The Dozen (StriX Launch 12)
Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1B - Rocket Lab Launch Complex 1, Mahia Peninsula, New Zealand

Synthetic aperture radar satellite for Japanese Earth imaging company Synspective.


Soyuz 2.1b/Fregat-M
Success
2 days, 6 hours ago
Glonass-K1 No. 20 (?)
43/3 (43L) - Plesetsk Cosmodrome, Russian Federation

Note: Satellite serial number and Cosmos designation not confirmed. Glonass-K are the third generation of satellite design for GLONASS satellite n…


Kuaizhou 11
Success
2 days, 20 hours ago
SpaceTY-51 & 52
Launch Area 95A - Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

2 Earth observation radar satellites built by the Chinese satellite manufacturer SpaceTY.


Falcon 9
Success
2 days, 21 hours ago
USSF-259
Space Launch Complex 4E - Vandenberg SFB, CA, USA

USSF-259 is a classified mission for the United States Space Force. It is possibly a batch of classified LEO satellites based on SpaceX’s Starshield …


Long March 12
Success
2 days, 22 hours ago
SatNet LEO Group 25
Commercial LC-2 - Wenchang Space Launch Site, People's Republic of China

A batch of 9 Low Earth Orbit communication satellites for the Chinese state owned SatNet constellation operated by the China Satellite Network Group.…


Soyuz 2.1b
Success
3 days, 9 hours ago
Progress MS-35 (96P)
31/6 - Baikonur Cosmodrome, Republic of Kazakhstan

Progress resupply mission to the International Space Station.


Gravity-1
Success
4 days, 1 hour ago
SpaceSail Polar Group #16
Yellow Sea (launch location 5) - Haiyang Oriental Spaceport

9 Low Earth Orbit communication satellites with Ku, Q and V band payloads for the G60 constellation operated by Shanghai Spacesail Technologies with …


Zhuque-2E Block 2
Success
4 days, 16 hours ago
SpaceSail Polar Group #15
Launch Area 96A - Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, People's Republic of China

10 Low Earth Orbit communication satellites with Ku, Q and V band payloads for the G60 constellation operated by Shanghai Spacesail Technologies with…


Vega-C
Success
4 days, 21 hours ago
Sentinel-3C & FLEX
Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV) - Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana

Sentinel-3C is the third satellite in the Sentinel-3 constellation, which provides high-accuracy optical, radar and altimetry data for marine and lan…