20m fairing to GEO, it's a big boy.
China's Space Program Thread II
- Thread starter Blitzo
- Start date
Judging by the map under, TJS-25's orbiting position should be around somewhere above east asia.
The rocket badge is clearly for Gaokao
Interesting recent news about potential work on an intermediary heavy launcher between CZ-10 and CZ-9 from CALT
June 11, 2026
"At 10:28 AM, the project shipment ceremony was solemnly held, marking the official completion of offline acceptance for the "7.5-meter-class ultra-large diameter high-strength ring for aerospace applications,"
With the joint witness of experts from the Steel Research Institute, the First Academy of Aerospace Science and Technology, and the Parker New Materials team, the shipment ceremony was successfully completed!
"The "7.5-meter-class ultra-large diameter high-strength ring for aerospace applications" shipped this time is made of S-03L martensitic stainless steel. This material has unique properties and is extremely difficult to process"
June 6, 2026, Tianjin, this was posted simultaneously with The Hainan gov 10.6m section wielding system China's Space Program Thread II on the same Aerospace Bidding platforms
"This tender project is for a Φ7m class box bottom welding system, classified as goods procurement, involving the fields of equipment and metal processing machinery"
April 8 2026
Yang Tianliang Chairman of Hainan Commercial Space Launch Site:
Workstations 3 and 4 here are both 5-meter level. In the future, we hope to have the opportunity to build some larger workstations, for example, 7-meter or 10-meter level, which could potentially generate thrust of several thousand tons.
(Due to the ties between CALT and HICAL, CALT has priority and partial exclusivity on HCSLS)
CALT previously mentioned such 7m rocket as an intermediary step on the roadmap to CZ-9 (here in 2023, SAST also previously mentionned a comparable project):
1) is CZ-10A; 2) will likely be CZ-10C, just with more powerful YF-219 instead of YF-209; 5) is CZ-9.
This could be a testbed for YF-215 and large scale steel launchers using existing Tianjin CALT plant until the Wenchang one is completed. This could also be a diversion of ressources that distracts from CZ-9
June 11, 2026
"At 10:28 AM, the project shipment ceremony was solemnly held, marking the official completion of offline acceptance for the "7.5-meter-class ultra-large diameter high-strength ring for aerospace applications,"
With the joint witness of experts from the Steel Research Institute, the First Academy of Aerospace Science and Technology, and the Parker New Materials team, the shipment ceremony was successfully completed!
"The "7.5-meter-class ultra-large diameter high-strength ring for aerospace applications" shipped this time is made of S-03L martensitic stainless steel. This material has unique properties and is extremely difficult to process"
June 6, 2026, Tianjin, this was posted simultaneously with The Hainan gov 10.6m section wielding system China's Space Program Thread II on the same Aerospace Bidding platforms
"This tender project is for a Φ7m class box bottom welding system, classified as goods procurement, involving the fields of equipment and metal processing machinery"
April 8 2026
Yang Tianliang Chairman of Hainan Commercial Space Launch Site:
Workstations 3 and 4 here are both 5-meter level. In the future, we hope to have the opportunity to build some larger workstations, for example, 7-meter or 10-meter level, which could potentially generate thrust of several thousand tons.
(Due to the ties between CALT and HICAL, CALT has priority and partial exclusivity on HCSLS)
CALT previously mentioned such 7m rocket as an intermediary step on the roadmap to CZ-9 (here in 2023, SAST also previously mentionned a comparable project):
1) is CZ-10A; 2) will likely be CZ-10C, just with more powerful YF-219 instead of YF-209; 5) is CZ-9.
This could be a testbed for YF-215 and large scale steel launchers using existing Tianjin CALT plant until the Wenchang one is completed. This could also be a diversion of ressources that distracts from CZ-9
Chinese New Glenn?Interesting recent news about potential work on an intermediary heavy launcher between CZ-10 and CZ-9 from CALT
June 11, 2026
"At 10:28 AM, the project shipment ceremony was solemnly held, marking the official completion of offline acceptance for the "7.5-meter-class ultra-large diameter high-strength ring for aerospace applications,"
With the joint witness of experts from the Steel Research Institute, the First Academy of Aerospace Science and Technology, and the Parker New Materials team, the shipment ceremony was successfully completed!
"The "7.5-meter-class ultra-large diameter high-strength ring for aerospace applications" shipped this time is made of S-03L martensitic stainless steel. This material has unique properties and is extremely difficult to process"
June 6, 2026, Tianjin, this was posted simultaneously with The Hainan gov 10.6m section wielding system China's Space Program Thread II on the same Aerospace Bidding platforms
"This tender project is for a Φ7m class box bottom welding system, classified as goods procurement, involving the fields of equipment and metal processing machinery"
April 8 2026
Yang Tianliang Chairman of Hainan Commercial Space Launch Site:
Workstations 3 and 4 here are both 5-meter level. In the future, we hope to have the opportunity to build some larger workstations, for example, 7-meter or 10-meter level, which could potentially generate thrust of several thousand tons.
(Due to the ties between CALT and HICAL, CALT has priority and partial exclusivity on HCSLS)
CALT previously mentioned such 7m rocket as an intermediary step on the roadmap to CZ-9 (here in 2023, SAST also previously mentionned a comparable project):
1) is CZ-10A; 2) will likely be CZ-10C, just with more powerful YF-219 instead of YF-209; 5) is CZ-9.
This could be a testbed for YF-215 and large scale steel launchers using existing Tianjin CALT plant until the Wenchang one is completed. This could also be a diversion of ressources that distracts from CZ-9
Interesting recent news about potential work on an intermediary heavy launcher between CZ-10 and CZ-9 from CALT
June 11, 2026
"At 10:28 AM, the project shipment ceremony was solemnly held, marking the official completion of offline acceptance for the "7.5-meter-class ultra-large diameter high-strength ring for aerospace applications,"
With the joint witness of experts from the Steel Research Institute, the First Academy of Aerospace Science and Technology, and the Parker New Materials team, the shipment ceremony was successfully completed!
"The "7.5-meter-class ultra-large diameter high-strength ring for aerospace applications" shipped this time is made of S-03L martensitic stainless steel. This material has unique properties and is extremely difficult to process"
June 6, 2026, Tianjin, this was posted simultaneously with The Hainan gov 10.6m section wielding system China's Space Program Thread II on the same Aerospace Bidding platforms
"This tender project is for a Φ7m class box bottom welding system, classified as goods procurement, involving the fields of equipment and metal processing machinery"
April 8 2026
Yang Tianliang Chairman of Hainan Commercial Space Launch Site:
Workstations 3 and 4 here are both 5-meter level. In the future, we hope to have the opportunity to build some larger workstations, for example, 7-meter or 10-meter level, which could potentially generate thrust of several thousand tons.
(Due to the ties between CALT and HICAL, CALT has priority and partial exclusivity on HCSLS)
CALT previously mentioned such 7m rocket as an intermediary step on the roadmap to CZ-9 (here in 2023, SAST also previously mentionned a comparable project):
1) is CZ-10A; 2) will likely be CZ-10C, just with more powerful YF-219 instead of YF-209; 5) is CZ-9.
This could be a testbed for YF-215 and large scale steel launchers using existing Tianjin CALT plant until the Wenchang one is completed. This could also be a diversion of ressources that distracts from CZ-9
Nice finds.
Given how it seems three of the rockets on that chart seem to be getting pursued to one degree or another (CZ-10A, CZ-10C, and CZ-9), I think it would not be unexpected if the 7m class rocket depicted would also be getting actually developed too.
I could actually see the 7m class rockets offering additional redundancy to CZ-9, perhaps even benefitting its development in some ways if there are parallel funding avenues. A 7m class would of course be able to offer greater throw weight (than CZ-10A/B/C), and the version of the 7m rocket using YF-215 depicted next to CZ-9 on the graph, would be quite a capable reusable heavy lifter in its own right and would find plentiful applications while also being able to risk reduce YF-215.
Of course, the first rate limiting step is the engine -- if the engine is sufficiently mature for a variety of applications, then it would somewhat make sense to use it on different rockets of differing levels of ambition/complexity.
First, let me mention that the issue of the 7-meter-diameter rocket body was actually raised during the key technology deepening research phase of CZ-9 from 2015 to 2020. In the literature on reusable rockets around 2019-2020, it was occasionally mentioned.Interesting recent news about potential work on an intermediary heavy launcher between CZ-10 and CZ-9 from CALT
June 11, 2026
"At 10:28 AM, the project shipment ceremony was solemnly held, marking the official completion of offline acceptance for the "7.5-meter-class ultra-large diameter high-strength ring for aerospace applications,"
With the joint witness of experts from the Steel Research Institute, the First Academy of Aerospace Science and Technology, and the Parker New Materials team, the shipment ceremony was successfully completed!
"The "7.5-meter-class ultra-large diameter high-strength ring for aerospace applications" shipped this time is made of S-03L martensitic stainless steel. This material has unique properties and is extremely difficult to process"
June 6, 2026, Tianjin, this was posted simultaneously with The Hainan gov 10.6m section wielding system China's Space Program Thread II on the same Aerospace Bidding platforms
"This tender project is for a Φ7m class box bottom welding system, classified as goods procurement, involving the fields of equipment and metal processing machinery"
April 8 2026
Yang Tianliang Chairman of Hainan Commercial Space Launch Site:
Workstations 3 and 4 here are both 5-meter level. In the future, we hope to have the opportunity to build some larger workstations, for example, 7-meter or 10-meter level, which could potentially generate thrust of several thousand tons.
(Due to the ties between CALT and HICAL, CALT has priority and partial exclusivity on HCSLS)
CALT previously mentioned such 7m rocket as an intermediary step on the roadmap to CZ-9 (here in 2023, SAST also previously mentionned a comparable project):
1) is CZ-10A; 2) will likely be CZ-10C, just with more powerful YF-219 instead of YF-209; 5) is CZ-9.
This could be a testbed for YF-215 and large scale steel launchers using existing Tianjin CALT plant until the Wenchang one is completed. This could also be a diversion of ressources that distracts from CZ-9
The general situation, as pieced together from Chinese literature, is roughly as follows:
During the early preliminary research phase from 2005 to 2010 (when the CZ-9 model was not yet finalized, and the target for the heavy-lift launch vehicle was LEO ≤ 100 tons), multiple heavy-lift launch vehicle configurations with diameters ranging from 6 to 9.5 meters were proposed.
The current 5-meter, 7-engine layout of CZ-10. During this period, there was actually a concept planned with a 6-meter, 7-engine arrangement.
By the end of this phase, three candidate rocket diameters had emerged: 7 meters, 8 meters, and 9 meters.
During the specific configuration selection phase from 2011 to 2015, the first version publicly disclosed early on (in 2011) was an early iteration of CZ-9 with an 8-meter diameter, using a two-and-a-half-stage design with kerosene first stage and hydrogen-oxygen boosters, having an LEO capacity of about 120 tons. In fact, during this period, detailed selection studies were simultaneously conducted for three CZ-9 specifications: 7.5 meters, 8.2-8.4 meters, and 9.5 meters. The 8-meter class mainly targeted an Ares V (SLS)-style scheme with hydrogen-oxygen core and solid boosters.
Within this period, after thorough research, China recognized that the two-and-a-half-stage CZ-9 had too many limitations in deep-space payload capacity (in fact, NASA had long debated this issue during the Constellation Program—whether to assemble in low Earth orbit for lunar travel or dock in high lunar orbit. Ares V actually had plans for low-Earth-orbit assembly to form a 240-ton combined vehicle before traveling to lunar orbit). The outcome of this phase was ultimately the abandonment of the low-Earth-orbit assembly lunar mission approach. From then on, CZ-9 was confirmed to adopt a three-and-a-half-stage configuration similar to Saturn V. This phase clarified several points:
A. The required payload capacity levels for heavy-lift launch vehicles were divided into three tiers: LEO 100t / 150t / 200t.
B. Heavy-lift launch vehicles must consider reusability requirements (the background need was the construction of a 20,000-ton synchronous orbit space solar power station starting around 2045, requiring a maximum of over 300 heavy-lift launches within 2 years, with a launch frequency as high as once every 3-4 days. Heavy-lift vehicles had to be reusable; otherwise, the fiscal cost would be unacceptable). It was also proposed that for building this space solar power station, heavy-lift launch services could be purchased from abroad, as it was then believed that China alone certainly couldn't achieve heavy-lift launches every few days; the launch plan had to be jointly completed by China, the U.S., Russia, and Europe (an idea absolutely unthinkable now—that was 2015).
C. The development of heavy-lift launch vehicles must consider a 30-year lifecycle, ensuring sufficient upgrade potential so that from its service entry around 2030 until 2060, the entire rocket lifecycle remains world-class and top-tier. Therefore, it must be developed in phases to meet the needs of the 2040s, 2050s, and 2060s. It must support and be compatible with Mars and deep-space mission requirements. Mars missions would require nuclear-thermal + nuclear-electric hybrid propulsion (necessary for deep space in general), thus a three-phase goal was basically planned for 2030-2045: Phase 1 achieving a series of expendable rockets (140t class), Phase 2 reusable rockets, Phase 3 nuclear-thermal upper stage (third stage).
During the key technology deepening research phase from 2016 to 2020, influenced by the conclusions of the previous phase (2015 literature), the three-and-a-half-stage configuration of CZ-9 that everyone later saw was publicly disclosed. This version, as essentially described, was a scaled-down Saturn V core with strap-on boosters, creating a strap-on version of Saturn V.Interesting recent news about potential work on an intermediary heavy launcher between CZ-10 and CZ-9 from CALT
June 11, 2026
"At 10:28 AM, the project shipment ceremony was solemnly held, marking the official completion of offline acceptance for the "7.5-meter-class ultra-large diameter high-strength ring for aerospace applications,"
With the joint witness of experts from the Steel Research Institute, the First Academy of Aerospace Science and Technology, and the Parker New Materials team, the shipment ceremony was successfully completed!
"The "7.5-meter-class ultra-large diameter high-strength ring for aerospace applications" shipped this time is made of S-03L martensitic stainless steel. This material has unique properties and is extremely difficult to process"
June 6, 2026, Tianjin, this was posted simultaneously with The Hainan gov 10.6m section wielding system China's Space Program Thread II on the same Aerospace Bidding platforms
"This tender project is for a Φ7m class box bottom welding system, classified as goods procurement, involving the fields of equipment and metal processing machinery"
April 8 2026
Yang Tianliang Chairman of Hainan Commercial Space Launch Site:
Workstations 3 and 4 here are both 5-meter level. In the future, we hope to have the opportunity to build some larger workstations, for example, 7-meter or 10-meter level, which could potentially generate thrust of several thousand tons.
(Due to the ties between CALT and HICAL, CALT has priority and partial exclusivity on HCSLS)
CALT previously mentioned such 7m rocket as an intermediary step on the roadmap to CZ-9 (here in 2023, SAST also previously mentionned a comparable project):
1) is CZ-10A; 2) will likely be CZ-10C, just with more powerful YF-219 instead of YF-209; 5) is CZ-9.
This could be a testbed for YF-215 and large scale steel launchers using existing Tianjin CALT plant until the Wenchang one is completed. This could also be a diversion of ressources that distracts from CZ-9
This phase involved in-depth studies on the series production of CZ-9 heavy-lift rocket configurations. Requirements explicitly emphasized support for universal missions (this is actually very important—in Chinese rocket design concepts, there is a distinction between universal rocket design and mission-specific design. China only achieved preliminary universal design with the CZ-5 generation, moving away from mission-customized designs). Lunar missions were no longer the sole purpose of heavy-lift vehicles; they now encompassed a range of space construction needs including space-based power stations, large orbital satellite service stations, crewed lunar/Mars/asteroid exploration, and unmanned deep-space exploration within the solar system. Economic efficiency, particularly reusability research, was placed as a key focus.
During this phase, the requirement for the "Three Transformations" (系列化, 模块化, 通用化—series production, modularization, and commonality; actually proposed for CZ-5, but not fully realized there) was explicitly confirmed. Regarding series production, it was clearly stated that 5-meter / 7-meter / 10-meter class rocket bodies (actually 5m, 7.5m, 9.5m—all three were to achieve launch capability, consistent with the CZ-5 approach of 2.25m/3.35m/5m bodies). Therefore, the 7.5-meter rocket body concept always existed. However, early in this phase, the choice was likely among 7.5m/8.4m/9m specifications for hydrogen-oxygen core + solid booster schemes.
Between 2016-2020, the hydrogen-oxygen core + 4 solid rocket booster scheme persisted, but ultimately the solid launch vehicle scheme transformed into a replacement for CZ-9's liquid booster plan (while also increasing the first-stage height).
After this phase, things became clearer to everyone: due to the increasing urgency of reusability requirements, the original three-and-a-half-stage Saturn V-like strap-on design was overturned, replaced by an enlarged Saturn V, and later switching the first and second stages to methane fuel.
So, the need for a 7.5-meter rocket body was actually proposed long ago and was very clear from 2015-2020. I believe the initial 7.5-meter rocket body was likely intended for a smaller SLS Block 2-style (Chinese version with 4 solid boosters) using hydrogen-oxygen + solid boosters. Everyone must understand that the design requirements for hydrogen-oxygen propelled rocket bodies and hydrocarbon-fueled rocket bodies are different. In fact, the STS Space Shuttle -> SLS, and China's CZ-5, all overlooked this issue early on and stumbled—hydrogen-oxygen rocket bodies are relatively light (due to liquid hydrogen's low density-specific impulse) and have lower load-bearing capacity, requiring solid boosters to help strengthen the rocket body's structural integrity.
Previously, the 7.5-meter rocket body was actually a hydrogen-oxygen propelled body. Therefore, the most reasonable and low-cost approach for series production was large solid boosters combined with a 7.5-meter hydrogen-oxygen core stage.
After CZ-9 changed its configuration, the original CZ-9 series production concept faced problems, but there was reluctance to abandon the research results on the 7.5-meter rocket body. Hence, the direction of a 7-meter configuration reusable rocket emerged. In fact, documents sporadically mentioned it around 2019, becoming more definite after 2021.
Actually, this information has been publicly available for a long time. What puzzles me is why the outside world seems unaware of it.
To me, these technologies did not suddenly appear; there have been scattered discussions and literature on them for quite some time. Yet, for the most part, the public remains in the dark.
For example, the 200-ton-class liquid oxygen-methane engine YF215 actually emerged as early as around 2005 and was mentioned multiple times in the 2010s.
With just a little tracking and research, one would know that this 200-ton methane rocket engine has always been intended for reusable rockets.
It was originally developed as a technical support for VTHL winged rockets (rocket planes). Between 2018 and 2020, CALT (China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology) publicly unveiled a suborbital vehicle (a 20-person version) powered by it, with a planned maiden flight around 2030–2035 (at the time). Its scaled-down version is today's AT-1B/AT-1C.
The amusing part is that many accounts on Weibo related to China's space industry, especially some self-media claiming to be enthusiasts, seem completely unaware of the existence, history, and background of this engine.
It's as laughable as their belief that CZ-9 and CZ-10 are in competition (between 2018 and 2021, the Chinese space community was largely misled by such narratives. Ordinary Chinese space enthusiasts were steered into debating whether to support CZ-9 or CZ-10, reminiscent of the early-century debates over nuclear submarines versus aircraft carriers). In reality, China's space sector stated as early as 2010 that the lunar mission would be a two-step process: first, an Apollo-class landing, followed five years later by a Constellation-scale program. The positioning of CZ-10 (CZ-5DY) and CZ-9 is actually akin to that of Ares I and Ares V, or SLS Block 1 and SLS Block 2—different vehicles for crew and cargo transportation.
As for the current 7-meter-class reusable rocket, in my view, it was already implied in the "Three Transformations" requirement for CZ-9 between 2015 and 2020 (following the rocket body series approach established with CZ-5). Initially, it was a sub-configuration series featuring a 7.5-meter hydrogen-oxygen core stage with solid boosters (to increase consumption of YF90 engines while retaining solid boosters), later evolving into the concept of a hydrocarbon-fueled first-stage system (with studies on using YF130, YF135, YF215, and YF209 as first-stage propulsion).
Let me remind everyone:
China has always operated on the principle of "adults don't need to choose—we want it all."
That's why China is now the only country in the world with a full range of industrial categories according to the United Nations.
China is different from the United States. The current U.S. approach is to dominate mainstream technological directions while letting other technology streams wither.
Earlier, the U.S. had the most advanced kerosene rocket engines (F-1, Saturn V), then shifted primarily to hydrogen-oxygen propulsion during the Space Shuttle era (largely abandoning kerosene).
Now, in the methane era, engines like the RS-25 (SSME), RS-68, and RL-10 are nearly extinct. After SLS, solid booster technology will likely also face discontinuation.
To study China's rocket propulsion system, you need a different perspective: China now possesses overwhelming technological reserves across four main propulsion categories.
In fact, for the three major liquid propulsion systems (kerosene, methane, hydrogen-oxygen), as well as solid rocket propulsion and even traditional storable propellants (both toxic and non-toxic), China has essentially established a systematic layout spanning heavy thrust (200+ tons), large thrust (100–150t), medium thrust (50–100t), and small thrust (3–25t).
Once this system is fully matured, over the next 30–50 years, China will achieve design freedom for rockets at all levels (Earth, deep space, celestial body landings).
The issues with Starship/New Glenn, in my view, stem from their lack of design freedom because they don't have a suitable propulsion spectrum to support them.
The problem with Starship (including HLS) lies in having only one 200+ ton methane engine as its propulsion system. It simply lacks the financial and human resources to develop multiple rocket engines of different thrust classes. This is why I appreciate Blue Origin—their propulsion configuration is stronger than Starship's, so they are destined to go further in deep space (provided they aren't killed by cash flow or other financial issues).
There's a difference between being aware of long term plans versus actually seeing things being implemented in a way that is visually and physically present.
That is especially so given the nebulous way in which various PRC space launch projects go through milestones, and different messaging at different levels of loudness and officiality.
I don't really think this needs to be emphasized -- the fact that China is pursuing multiple tracks with extensive technological and industry reserves is known.
From here the decisive outcome to measure is now speed and quantity of implementation.