China plans coastal base to launch rockets from the sea
- New site could help cut cost and risk associated with satellite launches by offering greater flexibility
- Official says facility can help meet demands of the country’s rapidly growing aerospace sector
China is building a facility on its east coast that will allow it to launch rockets from the sea, state media has reported.
Wang Zhanyu, vice-president of China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, said the site near the city of Haiyang in Shandong province would supplement the four existing launch sites, one on Hainan island and the others in remote areas of Gansu, Sichuan and Shanxi provinces.
“With the rapid development of the commercial aerospace industry, the demand for launches is increasing day by day. And the sea-based rocket launches are a powerful supplement to traditional land-based launches,” Wang told state news agency Xinhua on Wednesday.
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China successfully lands Chang’e 5 probe on moon to collect lunar samples
The first sea launches were carried out in the 1990s under a now-cancelled programme involving Russia, the United States, Norway and Ukraine.
In September this year China conducted a similar launch, sending nine satellites into space in a mission hailed as an “important step” by Li Zongli, director of the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Centre.