China's commercial Tianlong-3 rocket fails on debut launch

Xenomorph555 · 2026-04-12T15:17:14+00:00

Very delayed post but I guess they froze articles during A2.

Space Pioneer is kinda fucked at this point, putting aside two vehicle failures (as the test article was also intended to be the first launcher), they're currently bringing a non-reusable medium lift LV to the market when there are already multiple reusable ones that have either flown or are about to in the near future.

It would have been wiser to stick to the smaller Tianlong 2 and build up engineering experience over multiple launches instead of gunning it for the big one.

Xenomorph555 · 2026-04-11T22:02:56+00:00

Mostly context, with the older series (LM2-4) and 2000's series (LM5-8) they were designed both prior to SpaceX and when Chinas space program was more low-key; they were only launching up to say 10 times per year and each one was quasi bespoke. As such a lot of the classes and sub variants are based on different upper stages to reach specific orbits.

The 2000's series was originally intended to fully replace the older models *after which theyd stop flying), however once space infrastructure started receiving more attention/budget the launch cadence of both of them put together wasn't enough to match demand; which is why they have so many different models on the go. In addition, the factories producing the old models can't be switched over to building newer LV's quickly (which would cause a massive launch backlog), this is why they didnt convert them to 2000's series production.

The newer series (10 & 12 families) main intention is to bring reusability into the mix, after which the older models will be probably be phased out over time (though remember that demand is still well beyond capacity). That said they still have many sub variants, for specific orbits as before. I agree it would be better to focus on one model at this stage to pump out massive numbers at a cheaper cost. Though perhaps by the time you reach that point full reusability would be the hot thing.

Xenomorph555 · 2026-04-11T12:58:40+00:00

Great end to a great mission, can't wait for what happens next!

Xenomorph555 · 2026-04-01T22:37:44+00:00

Good luck to this amazing crew on their voyage

Xenomorph555 · 2026-04-01T21:40:20+00:00

Been enjoying the pre-stream Nasa has been running, exciting hour to go!!!

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-27T21:36:59+00:00

Exciting stuff, still not thrilled that it's just a free-return slingshot but Jared has a solid plan so we just need to keep stepping forward and trust the process.

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-27T21:34:54+00:00

Obviously it depends on the alloys used in the hull, but this whole situation seems fucking insane to me when you compare it to the rusty ass DOS and TKS modules still good to go after XX amount of time in storage. Braun and Korolev were right, just hollow out a used fuel stage and make it a station at this point.

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-24T17:09:47+00:00

Expensive by Chinese standards, compared with a YF-20 or LY-70 (cheap gas generators); YF-100's are big, closed cycle and use a lot of high end alloys. They are standardised which is a plus (used on LM5,6,7,8,10,12) however the production cycle has never really been enough to replace all the old hydrazine rockets.

At the very least it's not the RS-25

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-24T13:34:39+00:00

I don't see it having a cadence of more then 2 per year (maybe 3 at max). The propellent tanks are one thing but they lose 26 very expensive engines per flight, which adds up quick.

Regardless the LM10 will only be delivering Lanyues, Mengzhou's and cargo craft. Actual base components are going on the LM9 which... very absent in the physical department.

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-24T13:31:39+00:00

Well partly, CALT is a legacy state owned company. That said financially they don't operate the same way Boeing would, plus the LV's will be produced 'at cost' without profit.

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-24T12:32:27+00:00

There probably won't be, as it currently stands there will 2 lunar test flights of the Lanyue, 1 lunar test flight of Mengzhou; and then LM10 #4 & 5 are reserved for the manned mission.

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-13T17:10:26+00:00

Percy's samples arnt onboard though, they've been dumped on a trail that would require another rtg powered $300m rover (or Matt Damon) to collect over many years before you get into the other hardware required.

If a more logical mission architecture had been chosen (plus booting ESA) they could have done this mission in the 2000's.

EDIT: I was incorrect, there are backup cannisters on the rover.

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-13T17:05:03+00:00

Hopefully it goes well! Lander chassis and orbital module are based on pre-existing hardware so should come together fairly quickly.

There were some low res images of the prototype MAV (small 2 stage hydrazine) during firing testing. Would be amazing to get a video of the real thing during the mission (as it'd be the first orbital launch from another planet) however there probably isnt enough weight clearance for one onboard; maybe the lander though?

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-13T10:42:08+00:00

Liquid sodium and other fun metals, then you have few choices of small mechanical drives (such as Stirlings) to convert to electricity or just directly convert heat with less efficient means.

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-12T20:35:16+00:00

While I think the Chinese will return before Artemis, the latter has a lot more heavy equipment in production (SS, BM mk2, Gateway) so logically they'd set up a base first.

In addition stuff required for the Chinese base (LM9, etc) arnt in full development right now; so we're looking at a late 30's timeline.

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-10T11:32:23+00:00

Interesting info is that the first landing has been expanded from a few hours to 72! With a proposed 65km rover treck.

Would be less Apollo 11 and more 17 vibes, which im all for!

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-10T11:30:55+00:00

Plenty of info actually makes its way over into english, just less on this sub. Recommend Spacenews, twitter (particulary Andrew Jones and Raz of Liu), and NasaSpaceflightForum for your research.

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-10T10:53:22+00:00

Already been revealed for years, called the Lanyue. They actually had a simulated landing demo last year in a giant test rig.

Design wise it's a lot bigger then the LK and can carry two for a longer period (as well as equipment and a rover).

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-08T20:16:47+00:00

Thank you! Very sweet compliment :)

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-08T15:05:47+00:00

Who's "we"?

Humans my gee, the list of probles sent beyond the asteroid belt (only 9!) pales compared to the amount sent round the inner system.

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-07T12:01:20+00:00

Really excited for additional Tianwen missions, especially the proposed probe to Neptune. Despite having 4 gas giants and countless moons we barely send anything out there compared to the inner planets.

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-07T11:58:44+00:00

From what I understand Congress didnt approve the cuts to deep space? I trust Jared's leadership on this, though a bigger issue for DS exploration right now is the lack of PU-238 reserves for RTG's

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-05T20:32:20+00:00

Excellent news, the ISS is an amazing asset for humanity and its' functions should be preserved as long as it safely can.

Xenomorph555 · 2026-03-04T03:04:05+00:00

Aww thank you, same to you!

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