Advertisement
Science
ChinaScience

Big bang in Shanghai: rocket test injures 3 workers and spooks residents

  • SpaceX rival LandSpace says pressure testing went as expected, with no explosion or serious injuries to its employees
  • A company employee said the test related to fuel tanks for an enhanced version of LandSpace’s world-beating Zhuque-2 methane-fuelled rocket

Reading Time:2 minutes
Why you can trust SCMP
2
Chinese space start-up LandSpace said testing went as expected on a propellant tank, understood to be for an enhanced model of its world-beating methane-fuelled Zhuque-2 rocket​​​. Photo: Weibo
Ling Xinin Ohio
Three workers were injured and nearby residents reported that “a huge boom” shook their windows during testing of a LandSpace rocket fuel tank in Shanghai on Monday evening.
The Chinese start-up – which last year beat its rivals, including US-based SpaceX, to launch Zhuque-2, the world’s first methane-fuelled rocket, into orbit – said there were no abnormalities during the test.

A LandSpace representative told local media on Tuesday that the test “left some glass damaged and three production personnel with minor scratches”. The company and the district government said no explosion occurred.

Advertisement

Residents in Yushu Road, near the test site in Songjiang district, quickly took to social media platform Weibo to share their experience, which occurred at around 7.30pm.

“My windows were shaking badly, and then there was the sound of fire trucks in the street,” one resident wrote. “It felt like an earthquake or enormous thunder to me,” said another.

01:27

China beats SpaceX with world’s first methane-powered rocket launch

China beats SpaceX with world’s first methane-powered rocket launch

According to a video posted on Weibo, the workers, who were all male, were treated for head and hand injuries at Songjiang Central Hospital.

Advertisement
Select Voice
Choose your listening speed
Get through articles 2x faster
1.25x
250 WPM
Slow
Average
Fast
1.25x