The Chinese large reusable carrier rocket Tianlong-3 completed a 36-satellite separation test at its intelligent manufacturing base in Zhangjiagang City, east China's Jiangsu Province on October 24, announced its developer, the commercial aerospace company Space Pioneer on Monday.  

In a major breakthrough for China's commercial aerospace industry, the key test further validated the liquid-propellant model's capacity to launch multiple satellites simultaneously, critical for the country's satellite internet infrastructure.

Primarily tailored to China's low-orbit constellation missions, the rocket has a diameter of 3.8 meters, a total length of 72 meters and a liftoff mass of about 600 tonnes. It is capable of sending a payload of 17 to 22 tonnes to the low Earth orbit and 10 to 17 tonnes to sun-synchronous orbit.

Currently, the Beijing-based Space Pioneer has established an integrated industrial chain that connects all stages of rocket development from innovative R&D and large-scale manufacturing to dedicated launch facilities, with key hubs including Beijing, Xi'an, Gongyi, Suzhou and Jiuquan.

The company has achieved an initial annual production capacity of 30 Tianlong-3 rockets and 500 TH series LOX/Kerosene rocket engines. The company aims to conduct the maiden flight of the Tianlong-3 launch vehicle by the end of 2025, and expects to progressively support over 60 launch missions annually.