China's Zhuque-3 Reaches Orbit but Booster Explodes in Failed Landing Attempt

In its December 2025 maiden flight, Chinese private company LandSpace launched the 66-meter Zhuque-3 rocket into low Earth orbit. Its expendable upper stage successfully delivered its payload, but trouble struck on descent. During the first stage's landing burn, one engine stalled, and the booster burst into flames, exploding just meters from its landing pad. LandSpace confirmed that an “anomaly” occurred during recovery.

Launch and Landing Attempt

According to a Space.com report, the Zhuque-3 made by LandSpace is 66 meters tall and is built using stainless steel and liquid methane and oxygen. Its payload and upper stage were safely launched into orbit. The initial one then made a vertical landing re-entry attempt.

One of the engines malfunctioned during the landing burn, and the booster exploded into flames, hurling into a blazing crash against the target. LandSpace stated that it will study the flight data in order to enhance future landings.

Implications for China's Space Program

LandSpace​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌ praised the flight as a success in system verification and payload delivery, pointing out that the booster was returned within a few meters of its target. Chinese state media (Xinhua) reported an "abnormal combustion" during the landing burn.

As a reference, Falcon 9 by SpaceX was able to make a soft landing for the first time in 2015 after several failed attempts. According to LandSpace, a single booster is capable of around 20 flights. The experiment positions China well in the competition to develop reusable rockets that can reduce launch prices and facilitate satellite ​‍​‌‍​‍‌​‍​‌‍​‍‌constellations.