A large number of "Chinese Starlink" satellites are piled up in the warehouse, and Musk takes a deep breath: China is really serious now!
On October 20, Blue Origin Aerospace announced to the public: "Zhuque-3 has successfully completed the loading and training as well as the static ignition test, entering the key preparation stage for its first flight." What does this mean? It's very significant.
Because, in warehouses across the country, thousands of satellites known as the "Chinese version of Starlink" are stacked layer by layer, waiting to be launched into space. These satellites come from China's independently built low-orbit satellite constellation "Qianfan Constellation," which has completed five batches of network satellites launching so far. All of these urgently need rockets like Zhuque-3.
The most remarkable feature of Zhuque-3 lies in its reusable design. The first stage of Zhuque-3 is equipped with nine Tianque-12A engines and is installed with grid fins and landing legs, allowing it to autonomously return with high precision after performing orbital launch missions, achieving a soft landing at the recovery site for reuse.
China's "Qianfan Constellation" plan is accelerating. This constellation consists of tens of thousands of satellites and adopts a full-frequency band, multi-layer, multi-orbit constellation design.
The construction of Qianfan Constellation is divided into three steps: the first phase deploys 648 satellites to provide regional network coverage; the second phase deploys 1,296 satellites to provide global network coverage; the third phase plans more than 15,000 satellites to provide diversified service integration.
To reduce launch costs, rockets like Zhuque-3 are needed. Even if there are many satellites stacked in the warehouse, without reliable rocket launches, it is impossible to form a constellation system.
As of October 2025, the American Starlink project has approximately 10,000 operational satellites; compared to this, "China Star Network has launched six groups of satellites, totaling 47; Qianfan Constellation has launched five groups of satellites, totaling 72." The gap is very large.
However, China's satellite factories are already prepared for mass production. Once the satellite production line starts operating, it will inevitably surpass others. Can Zhuque-3 also be ready for mass production in a production line model? Facing this situation, it is estimated that even Musk would take a deep breath after reading it, but this is the strength of China as the world's largest industrial country.
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1846574262642883/
Statement: This article represents the views of the author.