Chinese startup LandSpace Technology Corp has defeated Elon Musk-owned SpaceX in the race to launch a methane-fueled rocket, Bloomberg reported.
The development has bolstered the Asian nation’s goal of challenging the United States as the dominant power in space, according to the wire service.
The Chinese company launched its rocket — ZQ-2 — from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in the Gansu province on Wednesday, according to CCTV, a state broadcaster.
The successful launch comes months after a failed first attempt in December. The attempt failed due to an abnormality in a supplementary second-stage engine.
The company had said in March that improvement measures were taken that proved effective in ground tests.
The company said the rocket arrived at the launch center in May, nine days after travelling from LandSpace’s manufacturing base in Jiaxing, with the final-stage preparations beginning on July 6.
Musk’s SpaceX and other companies have been developing rockets that can use methane as fuel — as it can be cleaner and safer than the fuels being used.
“The successful launch by LandSpace provides the Beijing-based company with bragging rights and boosts President Xi Jinping’s strategy to have China challenge the US in the race to dominate space,” according to Bloomberg.
Maxime Puteaux, who researches the space industry as a principal advisor with Paris-based Euroconsult, said: “[It’s] a major milestone.”
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