--- title: "Watch Out SpaceX: Chinese Startups Are Testing Reusable Rockets" description: "Two Chinese launch startups have successfully tested and demonstrated rockets that set the groundwork for future reusable launch vehicle technology." date: "2019-04-30" modified: "2019-04-30" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/watch-out-spacex-chinese-startups-test-reusable-launcher" categories: - "Space" - "SpaceX" tags: - "china" - "reusable rocket" - "SpaceX" - "the digest" --- # Watch Out SpaceX: Chinese Startups Are Testing Reusable Rockets ![Two Chinese launch startups have successfully tested and demonstrated rockets that set the groundwork for future reusable launch vehicle technology.]() *\Image: LinkSpace\* ## Reusable Future Two Chinese launch startups have successfully tested and demonstrated rockets that set the groundwork for future reusable launch vehicle technology, [*SpaceNews* reports](). China [decided to open up]() the launch of small satellites to private companies in 2014 and at least 15 SpaceX-like startups, [according to *Reuters*](), have emerged as a result. ## Orbit and Beyond Space Transportation, a Chinese startup that was founded last year, launched an 8,100 pound hypersonic aircraft it developed with Xiamen University during an April 22 test flight. The craft reached an altitude of 16 miles and was later recovered after landing in a predetermined spot. Another startup, LinkSpace, launched its RLV-T5 experimental rocket on April 19. The 3,300 pound rocket reached a hovering height of just [130 feet]() before landing, but future test flights are already scheduled. A more ambitious rocket, the NewLine-1, will attempt to push a payload of 440 pounds into sun-synchronous orbit in 2021, according to *SpaceNews*. ## Expensive Business These launchers may be smaller than what we've seen with SpaceX, but that comes with some key advantages. "But if you can take that small rocket and make it reusable, and you can launch it once a week, four times a month, 50 times a year, then with more volume, your profit increases," Macro Caceres, analyst at U.S. aerospace consultancy Teal Group, told *Reuters*. **READ MORE:** [Chinese firms Space Transportation and Linkspace test reusable launcher technologies]() \[*SpaceNews*\] **More on reusable rockets:** *[Europe's New Reusable Rocket Design Borrows Heavily from SpaceX]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()