Transport & space · August 2026

Zhuque-3 booster landing

A Chinese private rocket lands its first stage on legs.

LandSpace's Zhuque-3 landed its first stage about 390 km downrange in Gansu, the first Chinese landing on legs, though a fire afterward toppled it. Reusable launch stopped being an American monopoly.

See it in the living tree Wikipedia Source

Arcs above join it to what it stood on, arcs below to what it led to. The bar places this stretch on the tree's whole timeline.

What it built on 1

Reusable orbital rocket 2015

Related measurements

The dashed line marks when it first worked.

Objects launched into space Latest: 4.51k per year (2025) Source: Our World in Data

Payloads in low Earth orbit Latest: 14.5k objects (2025) Source: Our World in Data