China successfully recovered its second reusable rocket in just one month, intensifying its pursuit of the United States in the space race. The state-owned China Aerospace Science and Industry Corporation (CASIC) announced on April 27 that it had successfully recovered a reusable rocket, the "Zhuque-2", which was launched on April 25 from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Gansu Province. CASIC said that after the rocket reached an altitude of 350 kilometers and completed its mission, it successfully re-entered the atmosphere and landed back on Earth. The recovery of the Zhuque-2 rocket comes just a month after China's first reusable rocket, the "Zhuque-1", was successfully recovered on March 30. China's rapid progress in reusable rocket technology has raised expectations that it will be able to launch satellites and other spacecraft at a lower cost. The United States has been a leader in reusable rocket technology, with companies such as SpaceX and Blue Origin making significant advancements in recent years. However, with China's latest success, the country is now closing the gap with the United States in the space race. China's space program has made significant strides in recent years, with several notable achievements, including landing a rover on the far side of the Moon and launching a lunar probe. The country's space agency, the China National Space Administration (CNSA), has set ambitious goals for its space program, including sending humans to the Moon by 2030 and establishing a permanent human presence on the lunar surface. With its reusable rocket technology, China is expected to play a major role in the global space industry in the coming years. Analysts say that China's success in reusable rocket technology will have significant implications for the global space industry, as it will provide a more cost-effective option for launching satellites and other spacecraft. The development of reusable rockets is a key area of focus for the global space industry, as it has the potential to significantly reduce the cost of accessing space. China's progress in this area is likely to put pressure on other space-faring nations to accelerate their own development of reusable rocket technology. The country's success is also expected to inspire other countries to pursue their own space programs, which could lead to a new era of space exploration and development.

China has achieved its second successful rocket retrieval in just one month, marking a significant step forward in the reusable rocket sector. The private space company LandSpace successfully recovered the first stage engine of its LongMarch-3 (Chang Zheng 3) carrier rocket at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in Gansu Province.

This marks the first time a private Chinese firm has accomplished this feat. Last July, the state-owned China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CASC) achieved the first successful rocket retrieval in China. Recovering and reusing rocket stages can significantly reduce launch costs and increase the frequency of launches, boosting the competitiveness of the space industry.

According to LandSpace, the first stage engine accounts for about 70% of the total launch cost. On the 19th, the rocket was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center at 7:35 am local time. The Chang Zheng 3 succeeded in separating the first and second stages just 137 seconds after launch. The second stage continued its orbital flight, while the first stage began its descent and returned to the launch site 390km southeast of the launch site eight minutes after launch.

The return of the first stage closely resembled SpaceX's Falcon 9 method, utilizing four grid fins for flight control and engine thrust adjustment to significantly reduce the descent speed. Compared to the previous July 10B mission, which used a net for sea recovery, this mission employed a landing platform for ground recovery. This makes China the fifth country to secure the technology for recovering first-stage rocket engines, joining the United States' SpaceX and Blue Origin, and CASC.

This success came 8 months after the company's first attempt, which failed. LandSpace explained that improvements in the engine ignition system and adjustments to the descent path reduced the stress on the body, while reinforcing the ablative material on the first stage's bottom was the key to a successful landing. The second stage engine also performed flawlessly.

LandSpace's subsidiary, Hangjing Technology, successfully deployed a test satellite for the low-Earth orbit internet constellation, Houdou 3, into its target orbit. The Chang Zheng 3, like the Falcon 9, is made of stainless steel and can deliver payloads up to 14.2 tons to low Earth orbit, slightly less than SpaceX's Falcon 9's capacity of 22.8 tons.

The first-stage engine burns methane, with no soot produced. LandSpace aims to recover its first-stage engines up to 20 times. The company plans to immediately conduct a detailed inspection of the recovered first-stage engine and analyze how quickly it can be used for the next reflight. Industry experts expect the next reflight to carry the Quequan, a low-Earth orbit internet mega-constellation satellite developed by LandSpace.

LandSpace is China's first private space launch company, established in 2015. Apart from LandSpace, other Chinese companies developing reusable launch vehicles include Galactic Energy, Orient Space, and Space Pioneer.