Chinese commercial launch vehicle "Hyperbola-1" exploded on takeoff
The planned launch of a second commercial launch vehicle, SQX-1, developed by a Chinese private space company today, has failed.
The launch took place today at 4:15 pm Beijing time from the Jiuquan Cosmodrome in northwest China. During the flight, the rocket malfunctioned, the mission failed.
An investigation is underway to identify the specific cause of the malfunction, the launch site said in a statement.
The Hyperbola-1 four-stage launch vehicle is manufactured by the Chinese company i-Space. Its length is 20 meters, radius in coverage is 1.4 meters, payload weight is 300 kg.
The previous launch of SQX-1, which was successful, was on July 25, 2019.