China Nets Its Rocket: Sea-Platform Catch Offers a New Model for Booster Recovery

China just pulled off a first of a different kind. The Long March-10B carrier rocket achieved a fully controlled recovery, staging the world's first net-based capture of a launch vehicle over the South China Sea. A historic breakthrough for reusable rocket technology, and it pushes China firmly into the era of rocket recovery. The payoff is clear: lower commercial launch costs and a stronger competitive position for China's commercial space sector on the world stage.

The tension was real. About eight minutes after liftoff, the first stage was precisely captured by an offshore recovery platform. Engineers who developed the Long March-10B reportedly fought back tears when they saw real-time footage of the stage landing steadily. China has now become the second country in the world to master vertical rocket recovery technology. One expert called it "a precise two-way rendezvous between the rocket and the offshore platform," highlighting the tight coordination that made the capture possible.

China pioneers net-based rocket recovery, marking a historic breakthrough in reusable launch technology.

The mission itself ran like clockwork. At 12:15 pm on July 10, the Long March-10B lifted off from the Hainan Commercial Space Launch Site and delivered its payload into the designated orbit. Six minutes after stage separation, the first stage began its vertical return. It was recovered via a net-capture system on an offshore platform located more than 300 km from the launch site, and the recovery mission was a complete success.

The Long March-10B rocket has a 5-meter diameter and a two-stage configuration, with a liquid oxygen-kerosene first stage and a liquid oxygen-methane second stage. It generates about 890 tonnes of thrust and can carry 16 tonnes to low Earth orbit in reusable mode.

According to Global Times, the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT), under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), developed the Long March-10B. The rocket has a diameter of 5 meters and adopts a two-stage configuration. Its core first stage inherits the configuration of the Long March-10A first stage and uses liquid oxygen-kerosene propellant, while the second stage uses liquid oxygen-methane propellant.

The rocket generates about 890 tonnes of thrust at liftoff, with a launch mass of approximately 760 tonnes and a total length of about 63 meters. In reusable mode, it can deliver up to 16 tonnes to low Earth orbit.

Size matters here. Rocket technology expert Kan Lei from the Rocket Academy noted that a 5-meter diameter is currently the mainstream design for heavy-lift launch vehicles, since it allows for larger engines and more propellant to support higher payload capacity. The Long March-10B can meet a wide range of mission needs, including low-Earth-orbit satellite internet constellation deployment and large commercial satellite launches. Its reusability significantly lowers costs while offering high payload capacity and strong cost-performance advantages.

Experts say the return process includes four stages: coast and attitude adjustment, powered deceleration, aerodynamic deceleration, and landing.

During its maiden flight, the Long March-10B ascended for about 3,000 seconds after ignition. Kan Lei explained that during ascent, the first stage's seven liquid oxygen-kerosene engines powered the acceleration. After stage separation, the second stage's single liquid oxygen-methane engine took over. It completed orbit insertion through a sequence of powered flight, coast, attitude adjustment, and re-ignition, while also performing passivation procedures.

The return and landing phase was the core technical validation of this mission. After separating at around 150 seconds into flight, the first stage began descending from above 100 km altitude. It entered the return phase at several times the speed of sound.

Rocket designer Wang Cong broke the return process into four distinct stages: coast and attitude adjustment, powered deceleration, aerodynamic deceleration, and landing. In the first phase, grid fins deploy to adjust re-entry attitude, while the propellant settling system positions fuel for engine restart. In the powered deceleration phase, engines reignite to cut speed before the stage enters denser atmosphere, preventing structural damage from extreme thermal loads.

This is followed by aerodynamic deceleration, where grid fins provide drag while the rocket endures intense heating and aerodynamic stress. Finally, during landing, engineers use a "near-hover" control strategy. It combines grid fins and engine thrust with online trajectory planning to bring altitude and velocity down to near zero, enabling precise capture by the offshore net-capture system.

Most reusable rockets worldwide rely on landing legs. The Long March-10B team took a different path entirely, innovatively adopting a net-based offshore capture system. It offers what experts describe as a "Chinese solution" for large-scale rocket recovery, showcasing a distinct engineering approach.

Technical expert Chen Muye explained that net-based recovery is more forgiving on landing requirements. It eliminates the need for complex landing legs, which reduces structural weight and increases payload capacity. It also allows greater tolerance in landing accuracy by expanding the capture window, and the design can scale to accommodate rockets of different sizes.

The offshore recovery vessel "Navigator" was already in position as the Long March-10B first stage descended over the South China Sea. The platform measures 144 meters long and 50 meters wide, with a draft of 5.5 meters and a full-load displacement of 25,000 tonnes. Featuring a Class 2 Dynamic Positioning (DP2) system, it can counter wind, waves, and currents to hold a precise location and heading, effectively serving as a stable mobile landing site.

The offshore recovery platform "Navigator" is 144 meters long and 50 meters wide, with a draft of 5.5 meters and a displacement of 25,000 tonnes.

As the first stage approached, it decelerated and interfaced with cables driven by pulley systems. The rocket's onboard navigation and positioning systems continuously relayed velocity and position data so controllers could adjust attitude and speed. Meanwhile, the platform's net-capture system monitored the rocket in real time and controlled cable movement through ground systems.

Expert Sun Zhenlian used the same phrase again: "a precise two-way rendezvous between the rocket and the offshore platform." It captures the synchronized coordination that defined the entire operation.

Once inside the net system, the rocket's hooking mechanism deployed and engaged with four well-shaped cables. The rocket descended slowly and was captured precisely. Sun described the hooking system as enduring complex loads during contact, sliding, and tensioning, calling it "like a pair of strong hands firmly gripping the rocket." The net system then delivered buffered deceleration.

Securing the rocket took two more steps. First, auxiliary cables stabilized it from multiple directions. Then an automatic locking platform moved beneath the rocket to clamp and support it, which Sun compared to "fastening a seatbelt," ensuring stability despite wind and waves.

The development team is not slowing down. They plan to keep optimizing performance and advancing reusable technology, with a reused first-stage flight targeted before the end of the year. Kan Lei noted that the maturity of reusable rocket technology directly determines access-to-space capability and cost efficiency. With multiple large satellite internet constellations entering deployment, demand for launches is surging, marked by tight schedules and high frequency that expose the cost and capacity limitations of expendable rockets.

After the successful launch and recovery, aerospace personnel celebrated enthusiastically. 長十乙成功發射並回收後，一眾航天人員都歡呼雀躍。

He added that the successful maiden flight and recovery of the Long March-10B fills a gap in China's low-cost, heavy-lift reusable rocket capability. This will significantly boost competitiveness in the global commercial launch market. Going forward, the rocket will support large-scale constellation deployments in low and medium Earth orbits.

Looking ahead, recovered first stages from the Long March-10A may also be reused for launches. That would contribute flight data for its crewed missions and improve reliability. The Long March-10A, a next-generation crewed launch vehicle, is expected to serve as the "lifeline ladder" for astronauts traveling between Earth and space stations, representing an upgraded integration of the Long March-2F and Long March-7.

China is not stopping at the Long March-10B either. Based on its 5-meter design, engineers are developing a larger liquid oxygen-methane first stage, which will pair with the existing second-stage module to create the Long March-10C, a fully liquid oxygen-methane rocket aimed at commercial missions. Wang Cong said the project is being developed intensively and will further advance the industrialization of China's space transportation sector.

Mao Paishou

** 博客文章文責自負,不代表本公司立場 **

Bloomberg reported on October 14 local time that the EU is negotiating with China. Brussels hopes Beijing will lift sanctions on the small German company Sindlhauser Materials GmbH. That small firm supplies the Dutch ASML, the world's most important chip equipment manufacturer. The sanctions now threaten its survival.

EU seeks China deal to free ASML supplier Sindlhauser.　

The Deal on the Table

Bloomberg cited people in the know as saying the EU will remove trade restrictions on an unnamed Chinese company in exchange. That company is accused of assisting Russia in launching war against Ukraine.

In July this year, China imposed sanctions on Sindlhauser and 13 other European companies. The move retaliated for the EU's 21st round of sanctions against Russia. Sindlhauser is a small German company specializing in precision manufacturing and advanced coating technology for semiconductors and other industries.

In that round of sanctions, the EU listed several Chinese entities as sanctions targets. The EU said they were suspected of providing Russia with key components that could be used to manufacture weapons. Companies placed on the relevant EU and Chinese lists are subject to export controls.

People familiar with the matter said Sindlhauser relies on Chinese supplies of rare earths and critical minerals. If China's sanctions continue, the company will face the risk of bankruptcy within the coming months. It was also said this German company is part of ASML's supply chain.

ASML, Dutch semiconductor equipment giant.

Berlin and Brussels Race to Rescue Sindlhauser

Bloomberg sees a message in China's choice of target. Imposing controls on such an obscure company, the report argues, shows China knows exactly where Europe's economic bottlenecks sit.

An EU official says the European Union has begun discussions with China on whether each side would remove the entities from its own list. That means China's export control framework on one side, and the entities the EU has listed under its own regulations on the other.

The official added that any removal decision on the EU side would require unanimous support from all member states.

The trouble began in July when China's Ministry of Commerce put Sindlhauser on its export control list, and the company's first reaction was panic.

For weeks after the announcement, Sindlhauser had no clear view of whether, or how, it could keep operating.

Help came quickly. According to the people who knows what’s happening, the German government and the Bavarian state government, where Sindlhauser is headquartered, stepped in immediately to help the company find alternative suppliers wherever possible.

The two governments also explored other workarounds, such as recycling existing materials and seeking whatever financial support was available.

Brussels was watching too. Some officials there understood the company's plight and raised the matter with the Chinese side for several weeks.

Sindlhauser's rare earth supply nearly all Chinese.

A Policy Dilemma, an Intelligence Blind Spot

Sindlhauser sits squarely inside China's rare earth grip. According to the report, the company relies almost entirely on Chinese rare earths, and its placement on the export control list dealt a direct blow to its supply chain.

The company had previously taken almost no measures to diversify its supply sources or reduce its dependence on Chinese raw materials.

Some officials see a problem with the rescue. Removing companies such as Sindlhauser from the sanctions list, they worry, could once again weaken the urgency for these European companies to build supply chain networks outside China.

That leaves the German government and EU officials in a bind. Deciding through negotiations which companies go onto or come off trade restriction lists could set a bad precedent for other companies also hoping for sanctions exemptions. It would also mean the EU must make concessions on the question of certain Chinese entities.

But officials involved in handling the matter see a deeper problem. The situation behind the case, they argue, is more concerning, though not surprising.

The explanation: over the past year and a half, China has been collecting information on global supply chains as much as it possibly can. That is how China identified a small company in Bavaria as a supplier to the world's most important chip equipment manufacturer.

Beijing's map of global supply chains runs remarkably deep. The report credits that insight to the licensing system China has built for exports of critical minerals and rare earths.

The system requires foreign companies to submit detailed information, including their customers, how and where Chinese raw materials are used, and photos of the final products.

Germany shows the cost. Some companies have been leaking business secrets to China, while the German government remained completely unaware and unable to obtain the same or even similar information.

More important, the German government still has not formulated any strategy to address its shortcomings in economic intelligence.

A Possible Template, and China's Stated Position

The talks went straight to the top. According to the report, EU Trade Commissioner Maroš Šefčovič visited Beijing last week and met with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao. The two sides discussed lifting restrictions on Sindlhauser in exchange for relief for a Chinese company.

EU trade chief Šefčovič met Wang Wentao in Beijing.

The backdrop is stark. The EU is hunting for a fix to a massive trade deficit that exceeds $1 billion every single day.

People familiar with the matter say the two sides agreed in Beijing to strengthen information sharing and to give each other advance notice of export restriction measures.

The "one-for-one" arrangement around Sindlhauser, in which each side takes the other's company off its restriction list, could become a template for similar moves in the future. The EU is expected to act first. Only then would China lift its restrictions on the German company.

China's message has stayed consistent. The Chinese side has repeatedly stressed that China holds an objective and impartial position on the Ukraine crisis, stays committed to promoting peace talks, and plays a constructive role in advancing a political resolution of the crisis.

The opposition is just as firm. China firmly rejects the EU's blame-shifting, smears and denigration over the Ukraine crisis. It equally and firmly opposes the EU's unjustified listing and sanctions against Chinese companies and citizens.