Dramatic drone footage captures failed Chinese rocket landing

Facepalm: Chinese startups are striving to replicate the success of SpaceX and Blue Origin in landing and reusing rockets, a feat achieved nearly a decade ago. Despite facing challenges along the way, one company has captured its failures with stunning cinematography.

During a re-entry “hop” test, Chinese rocket company Deep Blue Aerospace experienced a last-second failure, resulting in significant damage to the rocket and the destruction of its landing gear. The company promptly released a detailed analysis of the incident and shared impressive drone footage of the event.

The footage, spanning two minutes, showcases the launch and attempted landing of the rocket, named Nebula-1, from various angles as the drone circles around it. Everything seemed to be going smoothly until the engines shut off too high above the ground, causing the rocket to crash and explode at its base on the landing pad. Despite this, the main body of the rocket remained mostly intact.

Full video pic.twitter.com/B8rzldKE5N

– Andrew Jones (@AJ_FI) September 22, 2024

The objective of the test was to land the rocket after launching it to an altitude ranging from five to ten kilometers at a test site in Inner Mongolia. Despite the rough landing, Deep Blue Aerospace considers the trial to be “mostly” successful, having accomplished 10 out of 11 objectives. Another attempt is planned for November.

Powered by the Thunder-R liquid oxygen-kerosene engine, Nebula-1 is China’s first liquid-fueled reusable rocket. In 2022, it successfully landed after reaching an altitude of one kilometer.

Deep Blue Aerospace and other Chinese startups still have a considerable distance to cover to match the achievements of American rivals like SpaceX and Blue Origin, who achieved successful landings of reusable rockets in 2015 after launching them into space. Notably, SpaceX even accomplished landing its Falcon 9 rocket on a drone-controlled platform at sea.

Meanwhile, Boeing has encountered more setbacks than any other aerospace company in recent times. Two astronauts who were meant to visit the International Space Station for a few days are now stranded there until at least next year due to various issues with Boeing’s Starliner craft before and during the mission.

SpaceX’s Crew-9 mission, scheduled for February 2025, presents the next opportunity to rescue the stranded astronauts. SpaceX CEO Elon Musk remains dedicated to his Martian goals, revealing plans for five unmanned missions to Mars within two years and aiming to execute a manned mission before the decade concludes.