China's Zhuque-3 Reusable Rocket Passes Key Milestone (universetoday.com)
- Reference: 0179866466
- News link: https://science.slashdot.org/story/25/10/25/0126203/chinas-zhuque-3-reusable-rocket-passes-key-milestone
- Source link: https://www.universetoday.com/articles/chinas-zhuque-3-reusable-rocket-passes-key-milestone
> The latest milestone took place on Monday, Oct. 22nd at the Dongfeng commercial space innovation pilot zone (where the JSLC is located). It involved another static fire test, where the rocket was fully-fueled but remained fixed to the launch pad while the engines were fired. This kind of testing is a crucial prelaunch trial (what NASA refers to as a "wet dress rehearsal"), and places the company and China another step closer to making an inaugural flight test, which is expected to happen by the fourth quarter of 2025.
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> In traditional Chinese, Zhuque is the name of the Vermillion Bird that represents fire, the south, and summer, and is one of the four Symbols of the Chinese constellations. Like the Starship, the Zhuque-3 is composed of stainless steel and relies on a combination of liquid methane (LCH4) and liquid oxygen (LOX) propellant. The rocket will be powered by nine Tianque-12A (TQ-12A) engines and will measure 65.9 m (216 ft) tall and weigh 550,000 kg (1,210,000 lb). It's payload capacity will be significantly less than the Starship: 11,800 kg (26,000 lbs) in its expendable mode, and 8,000 kg (18,000 lbs) for the recoverable version. This is closer in payload capacity to the Falcon 9, which is capable of delivering 22,800 kg (50,265 lbs) to Low Earth Orbit (LEO).
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> In time, the company hopes to transition to the larger Zhuque-3E, which will be 76.2 m (250 ft) tall and powered by nine TQ-12B engines, and will be capable of delivering to 21,000 kg (46,000 lb) in its expandable mode and 18,300 kg (40,300 lb) recoverable. The long term goal is to create a reusable system that can rival the Falcon rocket family, bringing the country closer to its goal of achieving parity with NASA.
[1] https://www.universetoday.com/articles/chinas-zhuque-3-reusable-rocket-passes-key-milestone
Taikonauts? Really? We speak American here! (Score:1)
Can we put an end to the using different names for the same job based on the country the people are from? It was "cute" when there were only "astronauts" and "cosmonauts" but it's not cute any more. China has astronauts. Russia has astronauts. If you speak American then everyone has astronauts.
With that rant out of the way...
It is curious to see use of liquid methane as fuel. This appears to be a trend. Maybe they are just copying Elon's homework without understanding the reason for using methane, or
Re: (Score:1)
Well???
What is "the saying" you refer to??
As for terminology, I partly agree. If someone is speaking or writing in Mandarin, then, by all means, use the Mandarin word for astronaut. But if you are writing or speaking English, then use the English word, rather than dropping in some made up bullshit.
Re: (Score:2)
I really doubt that Chinese rocket scientists are simply copying without understanding.
Re: (Score:1)
No... We speak English here (well, the majority of us do). There is not such language as "American"...
I wonder..... (Score:2)
If the Chinese will take away sweet and sour memories of this milestone.
Chinese Food (Score:2)
Such a vehicle will be perfect for the delivery of Chinese food to those working in Earth orbit.
Re: (Score:2)
but it wont be americans - they are too fat\ heavy to make the payload cost effective.