China plans to take on Elon Musk鈥檚 space power with low-cost rocket launches
China has reportedly reached a major space sector milestone with its Kinetica-2 Y1 carrier rocket. The launch vehicle, also known as the Lijian-2 Y1, performed its inaugural flight on Monday, March 30.
According to local news reports, its launch cost less than the price of a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch. This statement is highly debatable, as it appears to be based on outdated launch cost figures.
Fact check: Did Kinetica-2 Y1 really fly at a lower cost than Falcon 9?
The Kinetica-2 Y1 rocket was developed by CAS Space, a commercial spin-off from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). It flew to space on March 30 from the commercial innovation pilot zone at Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwestern China.
During its debut flight, the Kinetica-2 Y1 rocket delivered three payloads to Earth鈥檚 orbit, including a prototype commercial cargo spacecraft and a satellite that will function as an orbital space lab.
According to from the South China Morning Post (SCMP), CAS Space vice-president Yang Haoliang claimed the Kinetica-2 Y1 rocket launch cost 30,000 yuan per kilogram (US$4,350 per 2.2lbs).
The SCMP report claims the cost of Elon Musk鈥檚 SpaceX Falcon 9 reusable rocket is typically quoted as around US$5,000 per kg. It cites Star Market Daily, a financial news subsidiary of the state-owned Shanghai Media Group.
Those numbers are outdated, and they don鈥檛 reflect more recent advances that have lowered the cost of SpaceX鈥檚 pioneering workhorse rocket. As Payload Space last year, the launch cost for a Falcon 9, based on a max 17.5-ton capacity basis, currently stands at around US$4,000 per kg. The higher cost quoted by Star Market Daily is more reflective of previous versions of SpaceX鈥檚 workhorse rocket.
The Kinetica-2 Y1 launch was still a major milestone
In a CAS Space following the launch, Yang, who is also chief commander for the rocket, said the Kinetica-2 Y1 achieved a similar launch cost to Falcon 9, despite the fact that it flew in a non-reusable configuration.
If true, this alone is still a remarkable achievement. Kinetica-2 Y1 flying at a similar cost to Falcon 9 when it鈥檚 not even reusable is very impressive, as SpaceX鈥檚 rocket is far and away the most successful reusable launch vehicle ever seen. The main benefit for reusable rockets, after all, is the fact that they can launch at a fraction of the cost when compared to their expendable counterparts.
鈥淲ith the introduction of recovery technology, costs could potentially be reduced further, possibly to around half of existing levels,鈥 CAS Space鈥檚 statement added.
CAS Space noted that it is developing a proprietary reusable engine for the rocket. It is also planning a 100-kilometer recovery test for its reusable rocket system later this year.