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One of China's workhorse rockets just exploded in flight

10 August 2026 at 16:05

One of China's most used rockets, the Long March 7A, exploded a little more than a minute after lifting off on Monday evening, local time.

The medium-lift rocket's payload was classified, but it was believed to be a military communications satellite. The rocket's liftoff from Wenchang Space Launch Site appeared to be nominal, but publicly captured videos (such as this one) showed that the rocket's first stage exploded about 1 minute and 20 seconds into flight.

The Long March 7A rocket was developed by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation and is operated by the state's space agency. As of Monday night in China, state officials have not commented on the explosion.

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Β© Li Zhenzhou/VCG via Getty Images

One of China's workhorse rockets just exploded in flight

10 August 2026 at 16:05

One of China's most used rockets, the Long March 7A, exploded a little more than a minute after lifting off on Monday evening, local time.

The medium-lift rocket's payload was classified, but it was believed to be a military communications satellite. The rocket's liftoff from Wenchang Space Launch Site appeared to be nominal, but publicly captured videos (such as this one) showed that the rocket's first stage exploded about 1 minute and 20 seconds into flight.

The Long March 7A rocket was developed by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation and is operated by the state's space agency. As of Monday night in China, state officials have not commented on the explosion.

Read full article

Comments

Β© Li Zhenzhou/VCG via Getty Images

Chinese Long March 7A rocket explodes shortly after liftoff

10 August 2026 at 14:24

HELSINKI β€” China appears to have lost an unknown payload after a Long March 7A rocket exploded less than 90 seconds into flight, according to amateur footage. The Long March […]

The post Chinese Long March 7A rocket explodes shortly after liftoff appeared first on SpaceNews.

China launches secretive TJS-27 pair, orbits next-gen Tianlian relay sat

1 August 2026 at 14:38

HELSINKI β€” China sent a new pair of secretive satellites into a programmatically new orbit Wednesday, while also upgrading its on-orbit communications relay capabilities. A Long March 6A rocket lifted […]

The post China launches secretive TJS-27 pair, orbits next-gen Tianlian relay sat appeared first on SpaceNews.

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