China quickly resumed space operations after a Long March 7A rocket broke up mid‑flight on Aug. 10. On Aug. 16 a Long March 12 delivered 24 internet satellites to low Earth orbit, and within 24 hours a Long March 2C placed the UAE's "SEO" satellite into orbit. CASC is investigating the 7A failure while more launches — including Zhuque‑3 and Chang'e 7 — are scheduled later this month.
China Returns to Flight: Two Successful Launches Days After Long March 7A Breakup
A white Long March 12 rocket lifts off against the backdrop of a rich blue sea.
China conducted two orbital launches within 24 hours less than a week after a Long March 7A rocket broke up mid‑flight, temporarily grounding parts of its launch manifest.
Back-to-Back Missions
On Aug. 16, the state-owned China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) resumed launches with a Long March 12 liftoff from the Hainan Commercial Space Launch Site in Wenchang. The rocket lifted off at 12:10 a.m. EDT (0410 GMT; 12:10 p.m. local time) and placed a stack of 24 internet‑service satellites into low Earth orbit (LEO).
Credit: CASC/Hu Zhipeng
Less than 24 hours later and roughly 1,300 miles (2,100 km) north of Wenchang, a Long March 2C launched from the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center in Shanxi province. That mission lifted off on Aug. 16 at 11:02 p.m. EDT (0302 GMT; 11:02 a.m. local time on Aug. 17) and successfully deployed the UAE's "SEO" satellite into its planned orbit, the China National Space Administration said.
The Long March 7A Failure
The return to flight follows the Aug. 10 breakup of a Long March 7A about 85 seconds after liftoff. Video of the incident showed the fairing and upper section bending backward, resulting in the loss of the rocket and its payload, the Zhongxing‑4B communications satellite. CASC has said the cause is under investigation but has not yet released technical details.
China's Long March 12 rocket lifted off with a stack of 24 internet satellites on Aug. 16, 2024. | Credit: CASC/Hu Zhipeng
How the Rockets Compare
Although the Long March 12 and Long March 7A are similar in height (about 203 ft / 62 m and 197 ft / 60 m, respectively), they serve different roles. The wider, two‑stage Long March 12 is optimized for heavier payloads to LEO and sun‑synchronous orbits. The three‑stage Long March 7A is designed for higher‑altitude missions such as geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) and beyond. The smaller, two‑stage Long March 2C stands about 141 ft (43 m) tall and typically launches lighter LEO payloads (lift capability roughly 3.9 tons).
Introduced in 2024, the Long March 12 has completed seven successful missions. The Long March 7A has recorded two failures in 18 launches since its 2020 debut.
What’s Next
China has additional missions planned this month, including the second flight of Landspace's reusable Zhuque‑3 vehicle (scheduled for the evening of Aug. 18) and a Long March 5 carrying the Chang'e 7 robotic mission to the Moon’s south pole (expected on Aug. 23).
Bottom line: After a mid‑flight breakup on Aug. 10, China quickly returned to operations with two successful launches, while investigators continue to probe the Long March 7A anomaly and the country prepares further missions.
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