"Four satellites in one rocket" at sea! China's first private rocket launch at sea, what is the significance?

At 17:34 Beijing time on September 5, 2023, my country's Taiyuan Satellite Center used the Ceres-1 sea-launched carrier rocket in Haiyang, Shandong and the surrounding waters to successfully send a total of four satellites, including Apocalypse 21 to 24, into the predetermined orbit. The launch mission was a complete success and set a new record for private rockets.

Image source: People's Daily

It is reported that the mission, codenamed "The Little Mermaid", was completed by the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center's sea launch team. The Ceres-1 sea-launched Yao-1 launch vehicle launch mission is the opening battle of this year's sea launch, and also the first flight battle of the Ceres-1 sea-launched Yao-1 launch vehicle.

Previously, the Ceres-1 series of commercial launch vehicle launch missions had achieved eight consecutive victories. The most recent one was at 12:59 on August 25 this year, when the Ceres-1 (Yao-8) launch vehicle (mission code: CORNFIELD CHASE) successfully and accurately delivered the Jilin-1 wide-band 02A satellite into the predetermined orbit.

Image source: Galaxy Power

The Apocalypse 21-24 satellites carried on this mission are low-orbit data acquisition satellites developed by Beijing Guodian Hi-Tech. They are part of the "Apocalypse Constellation" project, which mainly "provides global, quasi-real-time low-orbit satellite Internet of Things data services" and is scheduled to be deployed and operated in 2024.

Why do we have to launch rockets at sea? What are the difficulties in launching at sea?

Launching satellites at sea is a new model. Launching satellites near the equator not only saves fuel for satellite attitude adjustment and orbit change, but also maximizes the use of the power of the earth's rotation, saving energy for the rocket, further improving the rocket's carrying capacity, and effectively reducing the cost of rocket launches and satellite operations.

Image source: China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation

But at the same time, launching rockets at sea also faces a series of difficulties. First, if a solid-fuel carrier rocket is used, it has the advantages of being easy to operate and use, but the carrying capacity is relatively limited; if a liquid-fuel carrier rocket is used, the launch adaptability is stronger, but the long-distance transportation problem of cryogenic fuel needs to be solved. For the launch platform, it is required to have a large tonnage, good stability, and be able to adapt to the rocket launch environment.

Secondly, during the sea launch process, the carrier rocket needs to withstand the influence of the marine transportation environment, natural environment, and sea conditions, especially the natural environment with marine characteristics such as salt spray and mold, which will directly affect the selection of carrier rocket equipment and the formulation of test conditions.

Third, the carrier rocket is launched vertically from the ground at a land launch site, and the aiming point and general position can be measured in advance. For the launch of the carrier rocket at sea, it is necessary to carry out research and experimental verification of dynamic base aiming technology such as long-term heading maintenance and dynamic azimuth transmission.

What breakthroughs did this launch bring?

This is the first time that a domestic private rocket has been launched at sea, and it is also the first time that a domestic commercial spaceflight has entered an 800-kilometer inclined orbit. According to Galaxy Power, the company has achieved six major breakthroughs:

1. The first sea launch of a domestic private rocket

2. The world's first launch without support from a general-purpose land and sea mobile platform

3. The world's first unguided hot launch of a solid rocket at sea

4. Domestic commercial spaceflight enters 800-kilometer inclined orbit for the first time

5. For the first time in the world, a rocket adopts a high-precision navigation solution with vertical self-alignment at sea and online misalignment angle correction

6. The world's first solid rocket adopts a non-pyrotechnic locking and release mechanism

The complete success of this sea launch mission has helped the breakthrough development of civilian and commercial space launches from land to sea. In the future, the sea launch team will continue to play a role in the quality supervision of civilian and commercial rockets, continuously improve the quality control measures for civilian and commercial sea launches, and help the healthy, rapid and orderly development of China's civilian and commercial space industry.

Comprehensive sources: Xinhuanet, Science and Technology Daily, China Aerospace News, Galaxy Power, etc.