China’s Long March 7A rocket exploded just 85 seconds after launch on Monday night. The rocket blasted off from the Wenchang Space Launch Site in Hainan. It was carrying the Zhongxing-4B communications satellite into orbit. Videos showed the rocket turning into a huge fireball shortly after liftoff.
The rocket had failed only once before
Chinese state news agency Xinhua later confirmed the failure. It said the rocket “experienced an anomaly during flight.” The cause is still under investigation.The incident is a rare setback for China’s Long March 7A rocket. The rocket was preparing for its 18th mission. It had failed only once before, during its first flight in 2020.
Monday’s explosion also attracted attention because Chinese state media gave the incident limited coverage. Some videos shared by users on Chinese social media were reportedly removed or became harder to find.
Meanwhile, SpaceX founder Elon Musk reacted on X with a simple comment:
“Rockets are insanely hard.”
China’s Big plans for its Space Programme
China has big plans for its space programme. President Xi Jinping wants the country to become a global space science leader by 2050. The country is also competing with the United States in several areas. These include moon missions, satellite launches and reusable rockets.
The Long March 7A is not reusable. It is a three-stage rocket built by China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology. The rocket is about 60 metres long and can carry up to seven tonnes to geostationary transfer orbit.
Interestingly, the failure came just before another major Chinese rocket launch. The planned launch of LandSpace’s Zhuque-3 was reportedly delayed. The rocket is one of China’s biggest attempts to develop reusable launch technology. Its first flight in December 2025 ended after its booster caught fire. However, China later achieved a breakthrough by successfully recovering the booster during another test.
Monday’s Long March 7A failure could therefore add pressure to China’s growing space ambitions.
