[Reading Science] China's 'World's First Liquid Methane Rocket' Launch Failed

Liquid methane main engine 2 launch vehicle under development by Chinese private space company Lanzhen Aerospace.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] China, which had been doing well in space development, has experienced a setback after a long time. The world's first attempt at an orbital launch using a liquid methane rocket failed. However, despite this failure, China is still regarded as a leader in the research of space launch vehicles fueled by liquid methane.

On the 14th at around 5:30 PM, Chinese private space company LandSpace Aerospace launched the Zhuque 2 rocket, which uses liquid methane as fuel, from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center located in the Gobi Desert, China. The China National Space Administration and other authorities have yet to release an official statement regarding the success of this launch. This contrasts with the usual practice of immediately announcing success through the media.

However, videos suggesting that the second stage of the Zhuque 2 rocket malfunctioned abnormally and ultimately failed to reach orbit have been posted on social networking services such as Twitter. These videos show that while the first stage of the Zhuque 2 rocket operated normally during launch, significant losses in altitude and speed occurred about five minutes into the flight.

Despite this failure, experts evaluate that China's liquid methane rocket launch technology has made some progress. The space-specialized media SpaceNews stated, "Although this launch failed, it indicates a leap in liquid propulsion launch vehicle technology developed by a Chinese private launch company," and added, "It is significant as the world's first flight attempting to place a rocket fueled by liquid methane into orbit."

The Zhuque 2 is designed to carry 6 tons of payload to low Earth orbit (LEO) at an altitude of around 300 km, and about 4 tons to a sun-synchronous orbit at 500 km altitude. It has a diameter of 3.35 meters and a length of 49.5 meters, with a total launch weight of 219 tons and thrust reaching 268 tons. LandSpace Aerospace previously launched the smaller and simpler solid-propellant Zhuque 1 rocket four years ago, but it failed.

Globally, the development of launch vehicles using liquid methane, a clean fuel, instead of kerosene is active. Kerosene produces a lot of residue (soot) from the fuel, making engine reuse difficult. In contrast, liquid methane leaves almost no residue. SpaceX's Starship, ULA's Vulcan, Blue Origin's New Glenn, Rocket Lab's Neutron, and Relativity Space's Terran 1 are all liquid methane rockets. However, none have yet succeeded in an orbital test flight.

There are many competitors within China as well. In the private sector, companies such as iSpace, Galactic Energy, and Deep Blue are developing liquid methane engines, and the largest aerospace enterprise, China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), is also researching the Changzheng 9, a super heavy launch vehicle for Mars exploration, to use liquid methane.