Watch the Launch

Watch the Launch

XJY-7 & others

Overview

Destination: Sun-Synchronous Orbit
Mission: Government/Top Secret

Sun-Synchronous Orbit 201 Wenchang Space Launch Site, People's Republic of China

XJY-7 is an undisclosed Chinese government payload for the first launch of Long March 8

Updates

spacevogel • Dec. 22, 2020, 6:11 a.m.

Launch was successful


Cosmic_Penguin • Dec. 21, 2020, 2:37 a.m.

New launch time confirmed.


Cosmic_Penguin • Dec. 20, 2020, 1:32 a.m.

Unofficial reports of weather related scrub.


Cosmic_Penguin • Dec. 19, 2020, 1:45 p.m.

Found related NOTAM; refined launch window. (A2908/20)


Long March 8

Family:
Configuration:

Long March 8 (Chinese: 长征八号运载火箭) is an orbital launch vehicle developed by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology to launch up to 5000 kg to a 700 km altitude Sun-synchronous orbit (SSO). The rocket is based on the Long March 7 with its first stage and 2 out of its 4 boosters, along with the existing liquid hydrogen burning 3rd stage of the Long March 3A/3B/3C and 7A as its 2nd stage. A "Core Only" version omitting the boosters is also available.

Specifications
  • Stages
    2
  • Length
    50.34 m
  • Diameter
    3.35 m
  • Fairing Diameter
  • Launch Mass
    356.0 T
  • Thrust
    4800.0 kN
Family
  • Name
    Long March 8
  • Family
  • Variant
  • Alias
  • Full Name
    Long March 8
Payload Capacity
  • Launch Cost
  • Low Earth Orbit
    8100.0 kg
  • Geostationary Transfer Orbit
    2800.0 kg
  • Direct Geostationary
  • Sun-Synchronous Capacity
    5000.0 kg

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
SpaceNews

HEO’s satellite-to-satellite imaging uncovers secrets of Chinese tech-test spacecraft

Australian company HEO has imaged and modeled a mystery Chinese satellite prior to its reentry into Earth’s atmosphere, revealing previously unknown details about the spacecraft. The post HEO’s satellite-to-satellite imaging uncovers secr…

Spaceflight Now

China’s Long March 8 rocket successful in debut launch

A new Chinese launch vehicle, the Long March 8, has successfully placed five payloads into orbit on its first mission, debuting an expendable booster intended to eventually be outfitted for recovery and reuse.

NASA Spaceflight

Long March 8 – a future reusable rocket – conducts debut launch

China debuted the new Long March-8 – Chang Zheng-8 – launch vehicle out of Wenchang on Tuesday. This vehicle marks China’s move towards a reusable launch vehicle, with the recovery of the first stage and side boosters planned for a latter …

SpaceNews

China launches first Long March 8 from Wenchang spaceport

China successfully carried out a first launch of the new Long March 8 medium-lift rocket late Monday, marking a small step towards Chinese rocket reusability.

SpaceNews

China rolls out Long March 8 rocket for weekend test flight

China has rolled out a Long March 8 to the pad for the first launch of a rocket that will later be adapted for vertical landing and reuse.

Wenchang Space Launch Site, People's Republic of China

201


Long March 2D
Success
10 hours, 13 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
17 hours, 41 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, 4 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, 18 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, 19 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, 20 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, 7 hours ago
Progress MS-35 (96P)
31/6 - Baikonur Cosmodrome, Republic of Kazakhstan

Progress resupply mission to the International Space Station.


Gravity-1
Success
3 days, 23 hours 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, 14 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, 19 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…