Rocket-maker unveils new blueprint

ChinaRocket, a commercial space wing of the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology, the country's leading rocket-maker, has unveiled its plans to develop a number of carrier rocket models to tap the space launch market.

The company announced on Saturday that its researchers are designing two types of solid-propellant carrier rockets - Smart Dragon 2 and Smart Dragon 3 - and at least one liquid-propellant type, the Flying Dragon 1.

The SD-2 will be 21 meters tall with a diameter of 2 meters, and will have a liftoff weight of 60 metric tons. It will be capable of carrying a 500-kilogram payload to a sun-synchronous orbit at an altitude of 500 kilometers. Flight tests are to begin next year.