&#34;One day, when humans have factories on the moon, I can take a rocket for a business trip and return after 7 days; this may become a common occurrence. Going to a meeting across the ocean, taking a rocket and arriving in one or two hours, this may also be realized.&#34; Recently, Yang Yiqiang, founder and chairman of the commercial rocket company Zhongke Aerospace, described this scenario to reporters.
Recently, our country has submitted information on a satellite network with a total scale of over 200,000 satellites. According to the international rule of &#34;first apply, first launch, first occupy,&#34; a certain proportion of satellites must be launched within a specified period; otherwise, the number applied for will be reduced or even invalidated. In this urgent situation, if the application is successful, our country's rocket capacity, satellite production capacity, and reusable technology urgently need to be iterated and upgraded.
The development of China's commercial aerospace has reached its tenth year, with opportunities and challenges coexisting, and momentum and resistance existing simultaneously. When will reusable rockets be realized? How can we truly find a low-cost, high-frequency, and scalable development path?
<h2>Winning Strategy: Building a Triple Guarantee of Technology, Efficiency, and Ecology</h2>
In 2025, our country will launch commercial rockets 25 times, putting 311 commercial satellites into orbit throughout the year, accounting for 84% of the total number of satellites launched into orbit in our country, and challenging two truly meaningful reusable rocket missions.
In this industry race, what sets companies apart is the triple guarantee built on technology, efficiency, and ecology.
Technological innovation is the foundation of development.
The vast satellite layout has generated a continuous and large-scale demand for rocket launches. Traditional disposable rocket capacity is costly, and improving the cost-effectiveness of rocket capacity and developing reusable technology has become the key to solving the problem.
In July 2023, the Zhuque-2 rocket developed by Blue Rocket became the world's first liquid oxygen-methane rocket to reach orbit. Two years later, this company once again launched an attack on reusable rocket technology, successfully putting Zhuque-3 into orbit. Although it did not successfully recover, it was a commendable attempt.
&#34;The Zhuque series of rockets has conquered the key core technology of liquid oxygen-methane engines and solved the coking problem of kerosene engines, which is one of the best paths to achieving reusable rockets,&#34; said Zhang Changwu, founder of Blue Rocket.
Tianbing Technology took the lead in developing the &#34;one rocket, 36 satellites&#34; launch technology; Zhongke Aerospace developed a high-performance, lightweight liquid oxygen-kerosene engine; Galaxy Aerospace completed the launch of the world's first large-scale fully flexible solar wing satellite; Weina Starry Sky achieved independent research and development of various core payloads represented by sub-meter-level high-resolution optical cameras; the space computing constellation &#34;Three-Body Computing Constellation&#34; officially entered the networking stage... Many companies holding key core technologies are at the forefront of the industry, showcasing their capabilities.
Efficiency improvement is the focus of competition.
Experts estimate that based on the current total number of satellite applications in our country, we need to successfully launch more than 25,000 satellites into space in the next 9 years and a total of over 120,000 satellites in the next 12 years.
How to catch the &#34;huge&#34; satellite orders? &#34;Producing satellites in batches like automobiles and mobile phones&#34; has become the consensus in the industry.
Our country's industrial foundation advantages and the integration advantages of digital technology continue to exert strength. On January 19, 2026, a group of satellite internet low-orbit satellites developed by Galaxy Aerospace successfully launched, achieving batch production with a fully digital process for the first time, significantly improving efficiency
&#34;Batch 'star-making' is just around the corner!&#34; Cheng Nan, Deputy General Manager of Micro-Nano Starry Sky, introduced that the company's intelligent production line has significantly shortened the total assembly testing cycle for a single satellite from the traditional 3-4 months to 1-1.5 months, with the fastest reaching 20-25 days. At the same time, the intelligent production line can save a large amount of assembly resources, enabling the production of 150 satellites weighing 200-500 kilograms each year.
This efficiency transformation is steadily expanding. In the commercial satellite company of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, a 500-kilogram satellite can reach factory status in 20 days, and core components like flexible solar wings are achieving large-scale production.
Stackable satellites are a new trend. &#34;The flat-configuration satellites we create allow multiple satellites to be stacked together like books, launching more satellites at once and greatly improving the efficiency of rocket usage,&#34; said Lin Guangrong, architect of the Galaxy Aerospace Constellation Communication System.
A complete ecosystem is an important support.
The Dongfang Aerospace Port located in Haiyang, Shandong, has built a full commercial aerospace industry chain with &#34;stars in the sky, arrows on land, ships at sea, and networks in the air,&#34; covering satellite manufacturing, rocket launching, and measurement and control services. &#34;After our rockets are born in the assembly plant, they only need to travel 5 kilometers to reach the vertical assembly building, where they can be smoothly moved onto the launch ship after vertical assembly,&#34; said Bu Xiangwei, co-founder of Dongfang Space. A series of supporting processes have reduced collaboration costs, forming a virtuous cycle that accelerates innovation.
&#34;Beijing is the city with the most complete commercial aerospace industry chain in the country, gathering over 70% of the national commercial rocket companies and over 50% of the top 100 commercial aerospace enterprises, forming a 'Southern Arrow, Northern Star' pattern, achieving a closed loop from 'making rockets' to 'using satellites' here,&#34; said Xu Jian, Director of the Material and Manufacturing Department of the Beijing Municipal Science and Technology Commission and the Zhongguancun Management Committee.
<h2>Development Dilemma: Profit Model Not Yet Established, Resource Constraints</h2>
Is commercial aerospace profitable?
Returning to the essence of commercial aerospace, it is a space activity driven by the market and aimed at profitability. Currently, there are over 600 commercial aerospace companies in China. According to industry insiders, most companies are still burning money for the &#34;future,&#34; relying heavily on financing and lacking sufficient market development, with only a few technologically advanced companies or those that have entered mass production achieving breakthroughs in profitability, resulting in profit margin disparities among companies at different positions in the industry chain.
Experts analyze that the cost of rocket launches is the core factor restricting the development of commercial aerospace.
There are many paths to reduce costs and increase efficiency. Yang Yiqiang introduced: &#34;The Li Jian No. 1 rocket significantly reduces research and launch costs through modular and universal design concepts, integrating and optimizing the overall rocket and key subsystems.&#34; &#34;Flexible offshore launches can reduce payload losses caused by orbital avoidance, which is also an important way to reduce costs and increase efficiency,&#34; said Bu Xiangwei.
However, reducing costs and increasing efficiency largely depends on rocket reusability technology.
Experts calculated: the &#34;big chunk&#34; of rocket costs comes from the engine and the rocket body, with the cost of the first-stage rocket body accounting for over 70%. Once reusability technology is broken through, allowing the rocket body and engine to be recovered and reused, the total launch cost of rockets can be reduced by 40%-60%
&#34;Tough nuts to crack.&#34; On December 3, 2025, the Zhuque-3 rocket was successfully launched; 20 days later, the &#34;national team&#34; commercial space rocket Chang Zheng-12A was successfully launched. Unfortunately, neither mission achieved recovery, but both obtained key engineering data on the rocket's real flight status, laying an important foundation for subsequent launches and reliable recovery of the sub-stages.
Experts particularly remind that the difficulty of recovery technology is very high. In the long term, it can reduce costs, but in the short term, it may not meet expectations. Experts explain that the reuse of rockets requires the addition of recovery structures and the reservation of propellant, which leads to a decrease in payload efficiency of 30%-60%, directly offsetting the cost dilution benefits brought by reuse. Rocket recovery must still provide sufficient payload capacity while reserving return fuel; otherwise, the economic viability of the rocket will be significantly compromised. &#34;Thus, it can be seen that reuse is merely a cost reduction approach rather than the ultimate goal; its technical application must be combined with high payload efficiency and strong production capacity,&#34; experts suggest.
During the interview, there was also a common issue troubling commercial space enterprises: limited resources.
&#34;To achieve high frequency, there must be opportunities for launches, but currently, we do not have enough launch opportunities and need to compete for limited launch pad resources,&#34; a practitioner bluntly stated.
Currently, there are 4 launch sites and 1 offshore launch base in China, with approximately 20 launch pads in total. Interviewed companies indicated that the tight resources for launch pads have constrained the frequency of commercial launches.
&#34;A regulatory system that adapts to 'flight-like launches' needs to be established, promoting the transformation of airspace usage, frequency applications, and other aspects towards 'aviation-style management,' achieving efficient turnover and normalizing rapid launch approvals,&#34; an industry insider suggested. Without high-frequency attempts, true technological maturity cannot be achieved.
<h2>Breaking the shackles: Accelerating demand traction and precise support</h2>
The enormous traction from downstream applications in the industrial chain is the source of sustainable development for commercial space.
In other words, the number of declared satellites is not the real demand, and the number of satellites in orbit is also not the real demand. The key to achieving a complete commercial closed loop in the space economy lies in the final link: application scenarios. This is the true industry demand.
Experts state that satellite internet is the space base station of the 6G era. Once mobile phones can connect directly to satellites, even in remote mountainous areas or at sea where signals are poor, smooth communication can be achieved through satellites. Commercial remote sensing satellites acquire a large amount of precise geographic information data, efficiently assisting in disaster warning and emergency rescue work; integrated services of satellite communication, navigation, and remote sensing accelerate the support for smart city development. &#34;The future of commercial space will mainly rely on space data services to generate profits,&#34; experts analyze.
To solve the &#34;good response but no action&#34; dilemma of satellite internet application demand, the state is taking action.
By the end of November 2025, the General Office of the State Council issued the &#34;Implementation Opinions on Accelerating Scene Cultivation and Promoting Large-Scale Application of New Scenes,&#34; encouraging the expansion of satellite service application scenarios and promoting the integrated application of space and ground.
Experts suggest leveraging policy &#34;favorable winds&#34; to promote scene construction releases as a starting point, encouraging relevant entities to increase procurement of commercial satellite services in emergency rescue, natural resource monitoring, and deeply explore applications in fields such as mobile phone direct satellite communication and insurance claims
The bottleneck issues such as &#34;resource constraints&#34; and &#34;insufficient funds&#34; reported by many enterprises are receiving attention and responses from all sectors of society.
&#34;We look forward to a model driven by national development, providing market-oriented demand, and allowing equal competition among enterprises for procurement services,&#34; said Cao Meng, Vice President of Beijing Aerospace Yuxing Technology Co., Ltd.
Significant policy benefits are being introduced intensively—
In November 2025, the National Space Administration issued the &#34;Action Plan for Promoting High-Quality and Safe Development of Commercial Space (2025-2027),&#34; incorporating commercial space into the overall layout of national space development, accelerating the formation of new productive forces in aerospace, achieving an overall improvement in aerospace development efficiency, and strongly supporting the construction of a space power; further opening national missions to public bidding procurement for private commercial space; introducing patient capital and tolerating trial-and-error costs in the innovation process...
&#34;We are greatly encouraged to see national policies further leaning towards commercial space. We hope to see more specific supporting measures introduced soon, exploring more diverse safety regulations and increasing industry inclusiveness,&#34; said an industry practitioner.
In 2026, a large number of commercial rockets, including Lijian No. 2 and Tianlong No. 3, are planned for launch, and more attempts at launching and recovering reusable rockets will further narrow the technological gap with foreign countries.
We look forward to the arrival of a truly significant year for commercial space.
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Commercial space travel is facing opportunities and challenges in China. Yang Yiqiang, the founder of Zhongke Aerospace, depicted future living scenarios for humanity on the moon and across the ocean. Our country has applied for network data for over 200,000 satellites, needing to launch a certain proportion of satellites within a specified time. The goal for 2025 is to launch 25 commercial launch vehicles and place 311 satellites into orbit. Technological innovation, efficiency improvement, and ecological construction are key, with Blue Rocket's Zhuque series rockets achieving breakthroughs in liquid oxygen-methane technology, promoting the development of reusable rockets

People's Daily: Commercial Space, "Cold Reflection" Under "High Heat"