A private China company launched the world’s first rocket powered by methane and liquid oxygen into orbit on Wednesday, beating American rivals to send next-generation launch vehicles into space.
The Zhuque-2 launch vehicle lifted off at 9:00 a.m. (01:00 GMT) from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China and completed the flight as scheduled, state media said.
It was the second attempt by Beijing-based LandSpace, one of the first firms in China’s commercial sector, to launch Zhuque-2. The first attempt in December failed.
Wednesday’s launch put China ahead of US rivals including Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin in the race to launch launch vehicles powered by methane, which is seen as less polluting, safer, cheaper and a suitable fuel in a reusable rocket.
LandSpace also became the second private Chinese company to launch a liquid-fueled rocket.
In April, Beijing Tianbing Technology successfully launched a kerosene-oxygen rocket, taking another step toward developing rockets that can be refueled and reused.
Chinese commercial space firms have jumped into the sector since 2014, when the government allowed private investment in the industry. LandSpace was one of the first and best funded of the entrants.
