HELSINKI — China will launch a pair of low-cost space station resupply spacecraft this year on new commercial launch vehicles, highlighting advances for the country’s space ecosystem.
The missions aim to provide flexible options and redundancy for supplying the Tiangong space station, while also illustrating the expansion and progress made by Chinese commercial space actors and other non-traditional space entities.
The Haolong cargo space shuttle from the Chengdu Aircraft Design Institute under the Aviation Industry Corporation (AVIC) will launch on Landspace’s Zhuque-3, a Feb. 2 article from state media China National Radio confirms. The reusable stainless steel, methane-liquid oxygen Zhuque-3 rocket is due to have its first flight in the third quarter of this year.
The reusable Haolong will be 10 meters in length, around 7,000 kilograms in mass and capable of landing on a runway. Its downmass capabilities will be a boost for science conducted on Tiangong, allowing the return of hardware and experiments. China currently only has very limited downmass capacity via the Shenzhou crew spacecraft.
Meanwhile the Qingzhou cargo spacecraft from the Innovation Academy for Microsatellites of the Chinese Academy of Sciences (IAMCAS) will launch on the first flight of the CAS Space Kinetica-2 (Lijian-2) rocket no earlier than September.
Qingzhou-1 is a single-module cargo spacecraft with 27 cubic meters of space, capable of carrying 1,800 to 2,000 kilograms of cargo.
It should however be noted that both AVIC and IAMCAS are state-owned entities. It is, however, a departure from the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) producing all spacecraft and modules for Tiangong. The spacecraft’s integration with commercial launch providers LandSpace and CAS Space (though the latter is itself a spinoff from the state-owned Chinese Academy of Sciences) marks a shift toward commercial space participation.
The development is analogous to NASA’s Commercial Resupply Services (CRS) program, diversifying China’s options for supplying Tiangong. Currently, its only method for delivering supplies and propellant to Tiangong is via Tianzhou cargo spacecraft which are destroyed upon reentry. Tianzhou spacecraft launch on the expendable Long March 7 rocket.
China plans to launch the Shenzhou-20 and 21 crewed missions to Tiangong this year, along with a single cargo mission, Tianzhou-9.
The introduction of the new, smaller cargo spacecraft using potentially reusable rockets indicates a step forward in China’s reusability capabilities and cost efficiency, as well as signalling broader involvement in the space industry for commercial actors.
The article states that Landspace, ambitiously, aims to launch three Zhuque-3 rockets this year, including launch of Haolong and, notably, a mission for the Guowang megaconstellation, confirming the participation of commercial launch companies in the project. Guowang, together with the Thousand Sails constellation, are China’s response to Starlink and other projects. Commercial participation and cost-effective, reusable launch options are expected to be necessary for the timely deployment of both constellations.
The Zhuque-3 has a 4.5-meter-diameter first stage and is designed for reuse for at least 20 flights. It can launch 21,000 kg to low Earth orbit (LEO) in expendable mode, or 18,300 kg when recovered.
Landspace also aims to recover one of the first stages using powered descent and landing legs. The company also plans six launches of the smaller, expendable Zhuque-2.
The cargo missions are the result of a China Manned Space Engineering Office (CMSEO) call for proposals issued in 2023 for low-cost cargo transportation systems to serve the Tiangong space station. Four proposals from 10 submissions were chosen to enter a detailed design phase in September 2023, and a pair of winning proposals were selected in October 2024.
The cargo project, along with the introduction of an array of new launch vehicles in 2025, could mean a landmark year for China’s space industry and its commercial participants, and for its push for reusable space technology and commercial space integration.
