Chinese rocket explodes 85 seconds after liftoff from Wenchang spaceport | Watch
A Chinese Long March 7A rocket carrying the ChinaSat-4B satellite exploded shortly after liftoff from the Wenchang Space Launch Site in southern China on Monday, according to a Reuters report. Footage circulating on social media appeared to show the rocket exploding near the coastal spaceport roughly 85 seconds after launch.
The rocket lifted off at 8.02 pm Beijing time but soon encountered what Chinese state news agency Xinhua described as a flight anomaly. The mission subsequently failed, with authorities saying the cause of the problem was still being analysed.
Long March 7A rocket explodes after launch
The Long March 7A took off from Wenchang at 8.02 pm local time. Around 85 seconds later, footage shared on social media showed what appeared to be an explosion near the spaceport.
Xinhua reported that the rocket had encountered a flight anomaly shortly after liftoff, resulting in the failure of the mission. The report added that the cause of the anomaly was being investigated.
China National Radio initially reported the launch, although that report was later made unavailable. China’s space authorities had not yet issued an official statement on the outcome of the mission.
First known Long March 7A failure since 2020
The incident is the first known failure of the Long March 7A since its maiden flight in March 2020. That debut mission also ended in failure.
The rocket returned to service in 2021 and went on to complete a series of successful missions. Its recent launches included the Tianlian-3 (01) satellite mission in late July.
What is the Long March 7A used for?
According to SpaceNews, the Long March 7A is designed to carry satellites into geosynchronous orbit. The rocket has increasingly been used as a replacement for the older Long March 3B, which relies on hypergolic propellants for such missions.
The latest incident now marks a setback for a rocket that had built up a run of successful launches following its troubled debut in 2020.
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