A leading Chinese commercial space company launched the country's first reusable rocket on Wednesday, with the spacecraft's second-stage booster managing to enter its designated orbit, despite the attempt to recover its first-stage booster remaining unsuccessful.

中国一家领先的商业航天公司蓝箭航天周三成功发射了该国首枚可重复使用火箭，尽管一级助推器的回收尝试未能成功，但该航天器的二级助推器仍成功进入预定轨道。

The ZQ 3 Y1 carrier rocket—a gigantic vessel designed and manufactured by Beijing-based Land-Space and primarily made ofstainless steel —blasted off at noon from its launch service tower at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwestern China. The code name Y1 signifies that the rocket is the first in the ZQ 3 series.

ZQ 3 Y1运载火箭（即朱雀三号遥一运载火箭）——这艘由北京蓝箭航天设计制造、主要采用不锈钢材质的巨型飞行器——于正午时分从中国西北部酒泉卫星发射中心的发射服务塔腾空而起。其代号Y1（遥一）表明该火箭是ZQ 3（朱雀）系列的首枚火箭。

After a short flight, the rocket's second-stage booster reached its preset orbital position, but the first-stage booster burst into a fireball over a designated recovery site in Minqin county in Gansu province, about 390 kilometers from the launch site.

经过短暂飞行，火箭第二级助推器抵达预定轨道位置，但第一级助推器在距发射场约390公里的甘肃省临泉县指定回收区上空化作火球。

The mission verified the overall plan for the testing, launch and flight of the ZQ 3 model, and demonstrated the compatibility of interfaces between various systems, according to LandSpace.

据蓝箭航天透露，此次任务验证了ZQ 3型号的测试、发射及飞行总体方案，并证明了各系统接口间的兼容性。

It successfully obtained critical technical data during the flight, laying a solid foundation for optimizing the rocket's design, enhancing its overall reliability, and realizing recovery, the company said.

该公司表示，此次飞行成功获取关键技术数据，为优化火箭设计、提升整体可靠性及实现回收奠定了坚实基础。

Technical specifications from LandSpace show that the ZQ 3 Y1 is 66.1 meters tall and 4.5 meters wide, and weighs nearly 560 metric tons when fully fueled. With a liftoffthrust of over 750 tons, it is capable of transporting heavy satellites to low-Earth or sun-synchronous orbits.

根据蓝箭航天提供的技术规格，朱雀三号遥一运载火箭火箭全高66.1米，宽4.5米，满油状态下重达近560吨。其起飞推力超过750吨，可将重型卫星送入近地轨道或太阳同步轨道。

The rocket was propelled by LandSpace's ownmethane engines—the first stage had nine TQ 12A engines, creating the major lift for the rocket, while the second stage had a TQ 15A engine. Compared with traditional types of rocket engines that can function only once, a methane engine is reusable and more environment-friendly.

该火箭采用蓝箭航天自主研发的甲烷发动机提供动力——第一级配备九台“天鹊”12A发动机，为火箭提供主要升力，第二级则搭载一台“天鹊”15A发动机。相较于传统火箭发动机仅能使用一次的特性，液氧甲烷发动机具备可重复使用性且更环保。

The rocket'spropellant tanks are constructed with stainless steel, which features good strength, resistance to high temperatures and corrosion, and a very competitive cost. There were four grid fins and four landing legs on the vessel, which were meant to allow the first-stage booster to make a soft landing.

火箭的推进剂储箱采用不锈钢制造，这种材料具有强度高、耐高温和耐腐蚀的特点，且成本极具竞争力。飞行器上设有四组格栅尾翼和四条着陆腿，旨在使第一级助推器能够实现软着陆。

LandSpace has invested a considerable amount of resources in the research and development of ZQ 3, as the company wants to use the reusable model to compete for lucrative launch service contracts, an opportunity created by China's grand plan of establishing a massive internet satellite network.

蓝箭航天投入了大量资源研发朱雀三号火箭，该公司希望借助可重复使用火箭的优势，竞标利润丰厚的发射服务合同——这一机遇源于中国建立庞大互联网卫星网络的宏伟计划。

In July 2023, LandSpace conducted the world's first orbital mission of a methane-propelled carrier rocket when it launched the ZQ 2 rocket. To date, the ZQ 2 and its modified variant have made a total of six launches.

2023年7月，蓝箭航天公司成功发射朱雀二号火箭，实现了全球首次甲烷推进运载火箭的轨道飞行任务。截至目前，朱雀二号及其改进型火箭已累计执行六次发射任务。

methane

n. /ˈmiː.θeɪn/

甲烷

propellant tanks

n. /prəˈpel.ənt/

推进剂储箱

thrust

n. /θrʌst/

驱动力

stainless steel

不锈钢