Wenchang City, Hainan Province, south China - July 10, 2026 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
1. Various of Long March-10B carrier rocket blasting off, flying

Hainan Province, south China - July 10, 2026 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
2. Various of separation of rocket's first, second stages
3. Various of first stage of rocket landing on seaborne platform

China Media Group released exclusive multi-angle footage Friday of the Long March-10B carrier rocket's launch and recovery, as China achieved its first controlled recovery of a carrier rocket first stage.

The rocket lifted off from the Wenchang Spacecraft Launch Site in south China's Hainan Province at 12:15 Friday. About six minutes after stage separation, the first stage returned and was successfully captured by a net system on a seaborne platform -- a global first. At the same time, the second stage delivered its payload into the preset orbit.

Developed by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology (CALT) under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation (CASC), the Long March-10B is a large, two-stage liquid-fueled rocket with a five-meter diameter core.

Standing about 63 meters tall with a takeoff thrust of 890 tons, it has a low Earth orbit payload capacity of 16 tons in reusable mode.

Friday's mission successfully validated several core technologies, including combined configuration optimization, methane autogenous pressurization, and propellant management using baffled tanks. It demonstrated critical first-stage reuse technologies such as multiple engine restarts, high-altitude ignition, adaptability to complex aerothermal environments, high-precision navigation and control, and a sea-based net-capture recovery system.

Looking ahead, the development team plans to continuously optimize the rocket's performance and accelerate the iteration of its reusable technologies, with a targeted first-stage reuse flight scheduled for the end of this year.

The successful maiden flight of the Long March-10B marks the 657th launch of the Long March rocket series.