China recovers rocket stage on land for first time after earlier sea landing

China has successfully recovered the first stage of a rocket on land for the first time, state media reported August 19, marking a new step in the country's efforts to develop reusable launch technology.

The Zhuque-3 reusable rocket was launched on the morning of August 19 in northwest China, with its first stage successfully recovered after separating from the rest of the rocket, Caliber.Az reports via US media.

The achievement marks China's second successful rocket-stage recovery. On July 10, the first stage of a Long March-10B rocket returned to a platform at sea after launch, using a net-capture system.

Recovery was China's first to use deployable landing legs and described it as a “major breakthrough” in the country's reusable rocket technology.

Reusable rockets are designed to reduce launch costs by allowing key hardware to be used again. SpaceX and Blue Origin have been recovering rocket stages since 2015, helping establish reusable launch systems as an important part of the global space industry.

China's latest achievement comes as Japan is also developing reusable rocket technology. On July 11, Japan conducted the first test flight of an experimental reusable rocket, which successfully took off and landed.

By Aghakazim Guliyev