Long March 8A Rocket Successfully Completes Maiden Flight

The rocket lifted off at 5:30 p.m. from the Wenchang Space Launch Site in Hainan province, delivering the second batch of low-orbit satellites for China's State-owned internet network into their designated trajectory. This mission marks the 559th launch in the Long March rocket series.

With this flight, Long March 8A becomes the latest operational member in the Long March family, which plays a crucial role in China's space missions.

Developed by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, a subsidiary of CASC, the Long March 8A stands 50.5 meters tall and weighs 371 metric tons at liftoff, producing a thrust of approximately 480 tons. It is designed primarily for deploying satellites into sun-synchronous orbits, capable of carrying payloads of up to 7 tons to a 700-kilometer altitude orbit.

Song Zhengyu, a leading rocket scientist at the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology and the chief designer of Long March 8A, explained that this model is derived from the Long March 8, retaining its first core stage and side boosters. The major advancements in the Long March 8A include a redesigned second core stage and an improved payload fairing, which comes in two sizes - 4.2 meters and 5.2 meters in diameter - offering increased payload capacity.

Additional technological enhancements in the Long March 8A include a more powerful engine, improved servo devices, and a refined top structure that reduces weight, according to Song.

The original Long March 8 made its debut in December 2020 at the Wenchang Space Launch Site and has since completed three missions. Moving forward, the Long March 8A will play a key role in deploying large-scale satellite constellations for China's space-based internet projects. All future Long March 8A launches will take place at the Wenchang Space Launch Site and the Hainan International Commercial Aerospace Launch Center.

Although China has multiple satellite internet projects in progress, official details remain scarce.