China has already had its best year for space launches – and leads the US
- 40 launches by the end of October is one more than the country managed last year, while the United States has had 39
- Projects such as Tiangong space station and the Jilin satellite series have pushed China’s growth, although it trails in rockets’ carrying capability
There were 40 launches, with two failures, from Chinese rocket launch pads by the end of October – already more than 2020’s 39, the country’s previous high for a year, with at least seven more planned before the end of December. In the same 10 months, the United States had 39 launches, of which 36 were successful.
Last week, China launched the 31st satellite in its biggest commercial remote sensing system, the 138-satellite Jilin series. It is an optical remote sensing satellite that can provide high-resolution images and high-speed data transmission.
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China's Shenzhou 13 launches astronauts on Tiangong space station mission
The new generation of rockets that are set to become the key carrier vehicles – the heavy-lifting Long March 5B and medium-lifting Long March 7A – both first succeeded in launching this year after delays or failures.