China’s rapidly expanding commercial space sector faced a rare setback this week after Galactic Energy’s Ceres-1 rocket suffered its second failure in 22 missions. The four-stage, solid-fuel launcher lifted off from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on Monday, carrying three satellites destined for low Earth orbit (LEO). Although the first phases of the mission proceeded as expected, the company reported that the rocket’s fourth stage shut down prematurely, preventing the payloads from reaching their planned orbit.
The lost satellites included two additions to the Jilin-1 Earth-observation constellation and a technology craft from Zhongbei University. Galactic Energy acknowledged the setback and stated that engineers had begun investigating the anomaly, expressing their intentions of refining both the rocket’s design and its quality-control processes. The company expressed its apologies to its customers, adding that lessons from the failed mission would guide upcoming improvements.
The Ceres-1, standing roughly 20 meters tall and weighing 33 metric tons at liftoff, has been one of the most consistent performers among China’s private launch vehicles. Prior to Monday’s attempt, it had notched 20 successful flights and delivered 85 satellites into orbit. Its previous failure occurred in 2023, followed by 11 consecutive successes. The latest malfunction, occurring about 510 seconds after ignition of the fourth stage, ended that recovery streak.
The launch came on the heels of a successful mission by the Long March 12, a state-backed rocket developed by the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology. That vehicle lifted off from Hainan and carried the newest batch of spacecraft for the Guowang satellite constellation, a large-scale national network intended to rival other global broadband systems. China is aiming to deploy roughly 13,000 satellites for Guowang, with more than 100 already in orbit and a target of 400 operational units by 2027.
Galactic Energy’s attention now shifts to preparing for the maiden flight of its larger Ceres-2 rocket, and it recently completed a successful engine test for the first stage of Pallas-1, a reusable liquid-fueled launcher. Both projects are central to its long-term strategy and are backed by a significant round of funding secured in September.
Despite the latest setback, China’s overall spaceflight cadence continues at a record pace, with 72 orbital launch attempts so far this year, with only two having ended in failure.
