China is advancing more rapidly in its development of a reusable rocket than previously believed. On Wednesday of last week, the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) successfully carried out a test launch of the rocket Long March 10 and a test of the capsule’s exhaust system Mengzhou. Both elements also made a controlled landing, but now we have learned that China managed to recover the rocket propellantwhich initially landed in the sea near the recovery platform.
Chinese media then reported that the propeller did so near the barge, equipped with a system of cables to catch itrather than on her because a rocket failure when deploying the grid fins with which it controls the direction in that phase of landing. Global Times later reported that CMSA recovered the propellant from the sea two days later. This is the first maritime recovery of a first stage of a Chinese rocket and demonstrates how the country’s space program is advancing, which foresees take astronauts to the Moon in 2030.
China has been developing their own reusable rocket designsincluding the Long March 10, following in the wake of SpaceX and his Falcon 9 and, if things end up going the way you want Elon Musk, Starship.
Last week’s test was done with a reduced scale version of the rocketwhich took off with the Mengzhou ship on top; Later, the ship completed the in-flight abortion testconsisting of the separation of the capsule from the propellant in the event of a problem with it.
Incredible drone footage of the Long March 10A first stage splashdown! 🌊🚀 The recovery ship can be seen standing by very close. I was hoping to see the cable catching mechanism being tested at the same time, but it seems not deployed. https://t.co/8g3rN6jCTSpic.twitter.com/GpoyiKUCM7
—CNSPACE (@CNSpaceflight) February 11, 2026
The first stage then continued outside the Earth’s atmosphere, restarted the engines and culminated with a controlled splashdown in the Sea of Southern China. According to Global Times, the propellant was hoisted using a crane system and will now be studied to improve the Long March 10 for the future. In images from Chinese state television CCTV, the first stage appeared to float, at first, after splashing down, instead of sinking. The information from the Chinese media does not give more details about the propellant recovery process or the time elapsed.
The upper section of the Long March 10A test vehicle—a dummy weight added to mimic the full height and mass of the first stage—sheared off from the propellant tanks upon splashdown impact. https://t.co/sT2N9fmuz8pic.twitter.com/Fd03LjEbE5
—CNSPACE (@CNSpaceflight) February 13, 2026
It is not yet clear whether this booster will be repaired and reused.although salt water tends to have a very detrimental effect on almost anything mechanical.
The Long March 10 is a medium-sized rocket designed to carry up to 168 tons in low Earth orbit or up to 67 tons in a lunar transfer orbit. This is more than enough capacity to send a manned capsule like Mengzhou, which weighs just under 24 tons.
If development continues successfully, The Long March 10 will be able to serve both manned and cargo lunar missionswhich could help in the future development of a permanent base on the Moon for Chinese astronauts.