Overview
- A Long March 7A lifted off from Wenchang at 2240 UTC on Dec. 30 carrying Shijian‑29A and 29B, which CASC says will verify new methods for detecting targets in space.
- Shijian‑29A was built by the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology, while Shijian‑29B was developed by the Innovation Academy for Microsatellites under the Chinese Academy of Sciences.
- Hours earlier, a Long March 4B from Jiuquan placed the Tianhui‑7 remote‑sensing satellite into a roughly 485‑kilometer sun‑synchronous orbit, with CAST citing a core payload designed for world‑class resolution and precision.
- The back‑to‑back missions brought China’s 2025 total to 92 orbital launches, a national record that included three debut rockets and only two reported failures.
- China Rocket says a Long March 10‑derived, 5‑meter reusable launcher—referred to in a presentation as Long March 10B—aims for a first flight in the first half of 2026 to support megaconstellation deployment, with a stated capacity of about 11,000 kilograms to a 900‑kilometer, 50‑degree orbit.