[Reading Science] 'Jjakttung Heaven' China, Did They Also Copy SpaceX Starship?

Chinese Private Company Accelerates Development of Starship-Inspired Launch Vehicle
Stainless Steel Body + Liquid Methane Engine Concept Modeled
Reusable Up to 20 Times for Medium-Low Orbit, Test Flight Scheduled This Year
US Media Calls It "Early Mini Version of Starship"
SNS Criticizes as "Jjaktong" (Fake)

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Bong-su] A Chinese private space startup is attracting attention for developing a launch vehicle similar to the super heavy-lift launch vehicle Starship being developed by the U.S. company SpaceX.

On the 20th, space news outlet SpaceNews reported that Space Epoch, based in Beijing, China, recently conducted an ignition test of its test launch vehicle "XZH-1 D1," which combines its 4.2m diameter stainless steel propellant tank with the liquid methane engine (Longyun 70) from engine manufacturer JiuZhou Winzen at a test site in Anhui Province.

A stainless steel launch vehicle under development by Space Epoch, a Chinese private space launch vehicle developer. Photo by Twitter

Space Epoch plans to build a 64m-long stainless steel launch vehicle through such tests. The goal is to achieve a payload capacity of 6.5 tons to a sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of 1100km. In particular, it is designed to be reusable up to 20 times to improve cost efficiency.

The ignition test was reportedly successful. JiuZhou Winzen, the engine manufacturer, stated after the test, "Ignition and reignition tests and ignition tests using a small amount of propellant were conducted," adding, "The combination of stainless steel propellant tanks and liquid oxygen-methane technology has laid a solid foundation for upcoming rocket flight tests."

Externally, including in the U.S., this company's experiment itself is seen as inspired by SpaceX's Starship development and has been dubbed a "mini Starship." The idea of using durable and easy-to-clean stainless steel as the fuel tank material for reusability, combined with a liquid methane engine, originated from Starship.

In fact, SpaceNews, which reported on this experiment, titled the article "Mini version of Starship," and evaluated that "it is clear that the inspiration came from SpaceX's Starship." The reporter who wrote the article also analyzed on their Twitter account, "Space Epoch wants to develop an early mini version of Starship." The fact that Space Epoch is following Starship's naming convention while producing test vehicles is also a basis for suspicion. Starship named its test vehicles sequentially as "SN/00." This company names theirs similarly, keeping the prefix and changing only the trailing numbers, such as "XZH-1 D1" and "XZH-1 D2." The vehicle used in the recent ignition test was "XZH-1 D1," and "XZH-1 D2" is expected to be used for orbital flight and sea landing tests this year.

On social media, reactions suspecting it as a "knockoff" continue. On the Twitter account of the SpaceNews reporter who shared the launch vehicle test news, one Twitter user said, "I hope (China) did not steal (the technology) from SpaceX." Another user sarcastically commented, "They copy too well. It's not even funny," and yet another criticized, "China is so boring. No unique ideas." Comments such as "Just another Chinese copy," and "Generally, Chinese people imitate others' success and later claim they discovered something great," were also made. Some doubted the performance, saying, "Just an expensive boiler," and "Will it even fly?" On the other hand, there were positive reactions like "Interesting," and "Reusability is excellent."

Meanwhile, SpaceX is developing Starship for deep space exploration missions to the Moon and Mars. It is a super heavy-lift launch vehicle standing 120m tall with a maximum diameter of 9m. It is the most powerful rocket ever, with a thrust of 17 million pounds (about 7,700 tons). It is planned to be used for the Artemis lunar exploration mission after 2025 and Mars exploration missions planned for the 2030s. The first orbital test flight was scheduled for last year but was postponed. On the 9th, SpaceX combined Starship and Falcon Heavy launch vehicles on the launch pad for fuel and propellant loading tests (wet dress rehearsal) and full engine ignition tests. After final inspections, the test will be conducted within weeks. SpaceX founder Elon Musk hinted on his Twitter account on the 7th that the first orbital launch test could take place in late February or March.