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  • Category: Tech

On July 10, 2026, China successfully launched the Long March 10B carrier rocket from the Hainan Commercial Space Launch Site, marking its first-ever controlled recovery of a rocket's first stage and the world's first sea-based net-capture rocket recovery .

Mission Overview

The rocket lifted off at 12:15 p.m. Beijing Time, successfully delivering its payload into the preset orbit. Approximately six minutes after the separation of the first and second stages, the first stage returned vertically and was captured by a net system aboard the offshore recovery platform "Pilot" . Both the launch and the recovery mission were declared a complete success .

Technical Specifications

The Long March 10B is a two-stage, 5-meter-diameter liquid commercial launch vehicle developed by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT) under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) . Key parameters include:

  • Total length: approximately 63 meters
  • Liftoff weight: approximately 760 tons
  • Liftoff thrust: approximately 890 tons
  • Payload capacity to low Earth orbit (reusable mode): 16 tons

The rocket's first stage uses liquid oxygen/kerosene propellant, while the second stage employs liquid oxygen/methane propellant .

Innovative Recovery System

Unlike the conventional vertical landing approach used by rockets like SpaceX's Falcon 9, the Long March 10B employs a uniquely Chinese-designed net-capture system . The recovery platform "Pilot" — 144 meters long, 50 meters wide, with a full-load displacement of 25,000 tons — uses a world-first "#"-shaped high-strength buffer net to catch the descending first stage via onboard hook mechanisms .

Advantages of the Net-Capture System

According to Chen Muye, a CASC engineer, this innovative approach offers several benefits:

  • Reduces the rocket's structural complexity and weight by eliminating landing legs
  • Increases payload capacity and cost efficiency
  • Enables a wider capture window through coordinated net-platform and rocket positioning
  • Reduces dependence on complex onboard landing systems

Future Plans

The development team will continue optimizing the rocket's performance and accelerating the iteration of reusable rocket technology. A second flight reusing the first stage is expected to be completed by the end of 2026 . This mission marks the 657th launch of the Long March rocket family .