Video introducing the model of the Long March 9 rocket. (Video: CCTV)
The Truong Chinh 9 model at the exhibition looks quite similar to SpaceX's Starship, and is designed to conquer new space goals for the country of a billion people.
A video demonstration of the Long March 9 concept shows it deploying its fins and performing an engine burn to re-enter the atmosphere. After re-entry, it will aim for an offshore landing pad. Notably, there is no capture structure like Starship's Mechazilla.
SpaceX demonstrated the first capture of a Super Heavy rocket booster last month, when Mechazilla robotic arms on the rocket's launch pad clamped the landing booster back into place.
SpaceX's Starship rocket. (Photo: SpaceX)
“ The heavy-lift carrier rocket has a capacity of 100 tons to low Earth orbit and 50 tons to lunar transfer orbit, which can meet the launch needs of various space missions, from low Earth orbit to deep space exploration ,” Chen Ziyu, a designer at the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT) under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), told China Central Television (CCTV).
Chen explained that the Long March 9 will be deployed in two phases: first a heavy-lift rocket model to increase access to space, then a two-stage, fully reusable configuration to reduce costs and increase launch frequency.
“ Our ultimate goal is to have a two-stage, fully reusable configuration. And different configurations can be adapted to the launch needs of missions to different orbits ,” Chen emphasized.
China has been working on super-heavy-lift rockets for years, but the design has changed several times. According to CALT presentations, the design and model for CALT's Changzheng 9 rocket has matured from a 10-meter expendable kerosene-powered rocket with four 5-meter side boosters to various kerosene- and methane-powered designs for reuse.
The super-heavy rocket will play a key role in China’s planned International Lunar Research Station (ILRS) in the 2030s. It will also be important for potential projects such as a geostationary solar power station. A reusable rocket would significantly cut costs and increase the ability to launch multiple times.
China is also planning to build at least two “constellations” in low Earth orbit, each with about 13,000 satellites. A fully reusable Long March 9 rocket with a high payload capacity would also be useful for deploying these satellites, just as SpaceX plans to use Starship to launch Starlink satellites into orbit.
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