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A flagship space company in China verified a 130-tonne-level engine for future heavy-lift, reusable rockets in northwest China's Shaanxi Province on Saturday.
The engine, using liquid oxygen and kerosene as its fuel, successfully ignited two times during a test, according to an announcement from China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC) titled "Heart is ready, and reusable rocket expected."
The CASC didn't specify the name of the engine. It is a different engine from the YF-130, which is more powerful at the 500-tonne-level.
"The engine aims to power China's next-generation reusable rocket," said the company. "It will boost China's ability to launch more rockets at a lower cost."
It can also be used in missions related to China's space station, it added.
It took CASC less than a year to design, build and verify the engine thanks to new technologies like 3D printing, automated soldering and smart assembly.
An engine for a reusable rocket must be able to ignite more than once to make sure it can get back to Earth in a controlled manner.
"The engine is designed to work at least 10 times," the company said. "All parts of the engine are reusable, except for the ignitor, which can be easily replaced."
The new engine is different from the current 120-tonne-level one in shape. It is significantly thinner in size. A rocket with a diameter of five meters can be packed with seven new engines to become more powerful that previous models.
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Copyright © 2023 CGTN. 京ICP备16065310号
Disinformation report hotline: 010-85061466