On 16 September 2026, China conducted a successful launch of the Gravity-1 Y3 carrier rocket from a sea platform in the waters near Shanghai. Nine satellites entered their designated orbits, and the mission was deemed a complete success.
The launch took place at 6:00 Beijing time. It was carried out by the Taiyuan Satellite Launch Center. On board were the next batch of satellites of the Qianfan constellation and the EUHT technology test satellite.
According to OrienSpace, the rocket's developer, the mission set new records for China's single sea launches: the payload exceeded three tons, and the orbital altitude was about 800 kilometers.
Gravity-1 has already conducted four sea launches, and all of them ended in success. The current mission became the first in which the rocket worked to deploy a large low-orbit satellite internet network.
The satellites were manufactured in Shanghai, and the launch took place not far from the city. Such coordination between ground production and sea launch helps improve the efficiency of commercial space operations.
How will this affect the pace of deploying satellite constellations in the coming years?
Sea launches make it possible to flexibly choose launch points and reduce the burden on ground spaceports. For OrienSpace and Chinese commercial spaceflight, this is another step toward regular missions with large payloads.
