China’s second Long March 5 rocket fell short of orbit Sunday after lifting off from a spaceport in the southern Chinese province of Hainan, placing a cloud over the country’s plans to send a robotic sample return mission to the moon later this year.
China’s Long March 5 rocket is counting down to liftoff Sunday from the country’s tropical island space center with a high-power, electrically-propelled communications satellite.
A Chinese Long March 3B rocket fired into space Wednesday with Shijian 13, also known as Chinasat 16, to deliver Internet connectivity to remote parts of China, airline travelers and high-speed trains.
A Long March 4B rocket lifted off from a remote launch base in the Gobi Desert Wednesday and placed a secretive spacecraft in orbit 375 miles above Earth, likely adding a new electronic surveillance station to the Chinese government’s growing satellite fleet.