Beijing: China’s ambitious space programme suffered a rare setback on Sunday as its new heavy-lift carrier rocket, the Long March-5 Y2 failed to put the country’s largest satellite into orbit. But Xinhua later reported that the rocket launch has failed. The Long March-5 made its maiden flight in November 2016 from Wenchang, sending its payload into pre-set orbit. With a weight of 7.5 tonnes, Shijian-18 is China’s latest technology experiment satellite and the heaviest satellite China has ever launched into space, it said. The Long March-5 uses environmentally friendly fuel, including kerosene, liquid hydrogen, and liquid oxygen, rather than highly toxic propellants, it said.

Source: Mint July 02, 2017 16:30 UTC