OneSpace, a private Chinese space launch company, launched a rocket from the Jiuguan Satellite Launch Center in the Gobi Desert and was captured by satellite Jilin-1. Orbiting at an altitude of around 332 miles, the rocket named OS-X1 was launched around mid-day time, on Friday.
According to a report, OneSpace was examining the solid-fuelled booster of OS-X1 rocket or Chongquing Liangjjang Star, which reached a suborbital altitude of 21.7 miles. The video, as taken by Jilin-1, displayed the initial stages of the solid-fuelled rocket, which took about three minutes to reach at an altitude of 22 miles.
This Chinese rocket launch company is planning to become a key player in the progressively competitive market of small-satellite launchers. Standing out amongst the rest, OneSpace is one of the rare space shuttle company that competes in the space industry dominated by the Government.
CEO Shu Chang, said to be the Elon Musk of China, persists an aim to lead his spacecraft business onto the international stage. In a recent statement, he said that he wants OneSpace to be “one of the biggest small-satellite launchers in the world and that it plans to perform 10 launches in the year 2019.
Elucidating about his passion for rocket launches, Chang has, in May, said: “When I saw the arc of the rocket firing, I felt it was so beautiful yet so transient. I was thinking, now that I have taken my first step, I must build larger rockets and launch them even further into outer space.”
