First private rocket launched from East China Sea

In a statement, Orienspace said that the mission set a new national record for the combined payload weight delivered into orbit by a Chinese private rocket, but declined to disclose the exact figure, citing commercial confidentiality.

Founded in 2020 by a group of veteran researchers from State-owned space enterprises, Orienspace developed the Gravity 1 as a three-stage solid-propellant rocket with four side boosters. All of its engines are equipped with flexible swinging nozzles for attitude control.

With a liftoff weight of 405 metric tons and a liftoff thrust of 600 tons, the rocket is capable of sending payloads weighing up to 6.5 tons into low-Earth orbit or 4.2 tons into a typical sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of 500 kilometers, according to the company.