China recovers Long March 10B first stage at sea in maiden flight
Long March 10B lifted off July 10 from Hainan; first stage landed on net-equipped ship 11 minutes later, marking China's first orbital-class booster recovery.
Saturday, July 11, 2026
China recovers Long March 10B first stage at sea in maiden flight — Saturday, July 11, 2026
China achieves first orbital booster recovery with Long March 10B on July 10; NASA's Roman Space Telescope in final prep at KSC for Aug 30 launch; SpaceX completes 33-engine Starship booster static fire test ahead of Flight 13. No recent credible news developments on the topic of space were found in the last 24–48 hours.
Biggest developments
SpaceX fires all 33 engines on next Super Heavy booster
Static fire test completed at Starbase ahead of Starship Flight 13, targeted for as soon as next week.
Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope in clean room at Kennedy Space Center
Telescope undergoing final processing ahead of Aug 30 Falcon Heavy launch; recent images show it in Florida clean room.
Bullish takes
- China's successful net-capture recovery advances reusable launch tech
- Roman telescope on track for late August launch
- Starship booster testing accelerates toward next flight test
Why this matters
Reusable booster milestones and telescope readiness signal accelerating cadence in orbital access and deep-space observation capabilities.