China's Space Program Thread II

[by78]

Jiuzhou has successfully completed a calibration test run (in accordance with flight profile requirements) of the LY-70 engine. The engine is now ready (or very close to ready) for delivery to end user, which in this case is the private launch provider Space Epoch (a.k.a. Beijing Arrowhead). The engine will be used in Space Epoch's reusable XZY-1 rocket that recently passed its first splashdown test.

Does anyone have access to the article in the screen capture below? It's from Jiuzhou and states that its LY (Lingyun) engine has completed a VTVL/hover test. Given that Jiuzhou is mainly an engine supplier, I want to know if the hopping test was conducted by another company's rocket. The image does hint that the test vehicle belonged to CASC, and if so, I wonder if it's a one-off test vehicle or an existing CASC project.

Some high-resolution images from the 10km VTVL test by the Eighth Academy of CASC.

 

[by78]

(Continued from above...)

The 3.8m-diameter VTVL test vehicle was powered by three 70-ton LOX/Methane Longyun (龙云/DragonCloud) engines from the private engine developer

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. The engine has reached a thrust of 745kN (sea level), with a specific impulse of 293s, and a thrust-to-weight ratio of >100. The company will continue to enhance the engine's performance. Longyun engines will be used later this year for a 75km sub-oritbal recovery test flight and an orbital recovery test flight in 2025.

The Eighth Academy of CASC published in 2022 a development roadmap for reusable launch vehicles, all powered by LOX/Methane engines:
1) 4m diameter, two-stage vehicle, with reusable 1st stage. 1st stage powered by seven or nine 80-ton engines, 2nd stage powered by one 80-ton vacuum engine. 3.5 to 6.5 tons of payload to SSO (700km).
2) 7m diameter, two-stage. 1st stage powered by 19 to 22 80-ton engines, 2nd stage powered by two 80-ton vacuum engines. >20 ton payload to SSO (700km). Will eventually have a fully reusable version (i.e. both stages return) with a payload capacity of 10 tons to LEO.
3) 9-to-10m diameter, two stage, fully reusable. 1st stage powered by 25 to 28 200-ton engines, 2nd stage powered by six to nine 200-ton engines. 100 ton payload capacity to LEO.

 

[taxiya]

(Continued from above...)

The 3.8m-diameter VTVL test vehicle was powered by three 70-ton LOX/Methane Longyun (龙云/DragonCloud) engines from the private engine developer

Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!

. The engine has reached a thrust of 745kN (sea level), with a specific impulse of 293s, and a thrust-to-weight ratio of >100. The company will continue to enhance the engine's performance. Longyun engines will be used later this year for a 75km sub-oritbal recovery test flight and an orbital recovery test flight in 2025.

The Eighth Academy of CASC published in 2022 a development roadmap for reusable launch vehicles, all powered by LOX/Methane engines:
1) 4m diameter, two-stage vehicle, with reusable 1st stage. 1st stage powered by seven or nine 80-ton engines, 2nd stage powered by one 80-ton vacuum engine. 3.5 to 6.5 tons of payload to SSO (700km).
2) 7m diameter, two-stage. 1st stage powered by 19 to 22 80-ton engines, 2nd stage powered by two 80-ton vacuum engines. >20 ton payload to SSO (700km). Will eventually have a fully reusable version (i.e. both stages return) with a payload capacity of 10 tons to LEO.
3) 9-to-10m diameter, two stage, fully reusable. 1st stage powered by 25 to 28 200-ton engines, 2nd stage powered by six to nine 200-ton engines. 100 ton payload capacity to LEO.

Do you have source to confirm that this CASC rocket is powered by Jiuzhou engine?

I did some search which gives positive hint but not definite proof. Here is an article

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体制内唯一外采可重复使用发动机，后续唯一参与国家航天任务动力配套并开展飞行任务的公司，产品经过国有及民营客户认可并屡次验证。

It claims that Jiuzhou is the only engine acquired and to be used by "体制内" (SOE, CASC).

Another hint is the investment history of Jiuzhou

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In 2023

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invested Jiuzhou. Shanghai Aerospace is 8th. It is very reasonable for 8th to use its own engine.

On the other hand, YF-209 has essentially the same thrust and throttle range, so the engine this time can be YF-209 as well.

 

[escobar]

Ongoing constructions at WSLS and the Hainan Commercial Space Launch Site.

 

[tiancai8888]

Do you have source to confirm that this CASC rocket is powered by Jiuzhou engine?

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[by78]

Do you have source to confirm that this CASC rocket is powered by Jiuzhou engine?

I did some search which gives positive hint but not definite proof. Here is an article

Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!

It claims that Jiuzhou is the only engine acquired and to be used by "体制内" (SOE, CASC).

Another hint is the investment history of Jiuzhou

Please, Log in or Register to view URLs content!

In 2023

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invested Jiuzhou. Shanghai Aerospace is 8th. It is very reasonable for 8th to use its own engine.

On the other hand, YF-209 has essentially the same thrust and throttle range, so the engine this time can be YF-209 as well.

I don't have a source directly quoting CASC. The sources I have are either circumstantial or quoting directly from Jiuzhou:

1) Jiuzhou supplied engines (Lingyun) to CASC for a

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.
2) Mr.

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, a retired rocket scientist,

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at Jiuzhou being an engine supplier to CASC's developmental reusable rockets.
3) Various reliable Weibo users named Jiuzhou's Longyun engine as being used in the latest VTVL test, albeit they could be quoting from the same article (see below).
4) An

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quoted Jiuzhou as being the engine supplier for the latest VTVL test.
5) Yizhuang Area (Beijing), home to the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area and where Jiuzhou is headquartered, puts out an

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naming Jiuzhou as the engine supplier to the latest VTVL test.

That's all I have.

 

[tacoburger]

Who do you want to blame? It is easier to complain than finding a solution when everybody is responsible and the country is much more crowded than any other coutries.

I blame the idiots in the chinese space program who ignored rocket development for 30 years.

Wenchang's low latitude helps nothing to avoid rocket stage landing on undesired area. The first stage usually drop at area roughly 1400km to 1600km from the launch site. That means coastal area near Malaysia of Phillipines.

A chance to fall into the ocean is much much better than the 100% chance of falling inland. You could do a dog leg maneuver to try to get your first stage to fall into the ocean. From inland launch sites, no matter what you do, it's gonna fall somewhere on land no matter what.

You're literally posting pictures of hundreds of thousands of square kilometers of open ocean that the 1st stage can land in and you're saying that there's no option to avoid landing on undesired areas? Avoiding every tiny little village in China's extremely populated rural areas is a little difference from plotting a course to try to drop the 1st stage onto a huge stretch open ocean. Don't be so delusional. With that kind of massive margin of safe landing space, it would be easy to guide the expanded 1st stage into open ocean be it via a dogleg maneuver, grid fins or parachutes.

 

[taxiya]

I don't have a source directly quoting CASC. The sources I have are either circumstantial or quoting directly from Jiuzhou:

1) Jiuzhou supplied engines (Lingyun) to CASC for a

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.
2) Mr.

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, a retired rocket scientist,

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at Jiuzhou being an engine supplier to CASC's developmental reusable rockets.
3) Various reliable Weibo users named Jiuzhou's Longyun engine as being used in the latest VTVL test, albeit they could be quoting from the same article (see below).
4) An

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quoted Jiuzhou as being the engine supplier for the latest VTVL test.
5) Yizhuang Area (Beijing), home to the Beijing Economic-Technological Development Area and where Jiuzhou is headquartered, puts out an

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naming Jiuzhou as the engine supplier to the latest VTVL test.

That's all I have.

Ok, thanks, 4 and 5 are as good as CASC directly saying.

 

[by78]

LandSpace has won a National Science and Technology Progress Award for developing the centrifugal pumps used in its TQ series of engines that powered the ZQ-2 rocket, the world's first methane rocket to reach orbit.

 

[huemens]

Chang'e 6 probe landed

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