Changzheng 7A Rocket Explodes After Launch in China, Destroys 200 Billion Won Satellite

Three-Stage Liquid-Fueled Changzheng 7A Launch Vehicle
Fourth Chinese Rocket Launch Failure This Year

China's medium-lift rocket "Changzheng 7A," ambitiously developed as part of the country's push to become a space power, exploded in midair just 85 seconds after launch. Authorities have launched an investigation into the cause of the launch failure.

According to China’s state-run Xinhua News Agency, the China National Space Administration launched a Changzheng 7A rocket carrying a communications satellite from the Wenchang Space Launch Center in Hainan Province at 8:02 p.m. local time on August 10. While the rocket was launched with flames blazing, it exploded in midair after just 85 seconds. The incident occurred before stage 1 separation, shattering both the rocket and its onboard satellite into pieces.

Cheongjeong 7A rocket exploding in midair. Screenshot from International Rocket Launch video

The Changzheng 7A is a medium-lift launch vehicle developed by the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC). It is a three-stage liquid-fueled rocket, about 60 meters tall, capable of placing satellites into higher orbits than previous launch vehicles. Since 2021, the Changzheng 7A has successfully completed 10 launches. As recently as July 29, another Changzheng-series rocket carrying a satellite was successfully launched.

According to local media outlets such as the Chengdu Daily, this marks the fourth failed space rocket launch in China so far this year. On January 17, Chinese private space companies experienced two failed rocket launches in a single day.

This incident may affect the timelines of other Chinese space projects. The Changzheng 7A was developed based on the Changzheng 7, which is used to deliver cargo to the Tiangong space station. Since many core technologies are shared between the Changzheng 7A and Changzheng 7, any defect discovered in shared components or devices could delay the launch schedules of other launch vehicles. At present, Chinese space authorities have stated that the "specific cause of the launch failure is under further analysis and investigation."

Meanwhile, the satellite loaded onto this Changzheng 7A rocket, known as "Zhongxing 4B," is a communications satellite designed to provide radio and TV services to users around the globe. According to the South China Morning Post, its price was reported to exceed 1 billion yuan (approximately 200 billion won).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.