A Long March-2D carrier rocket on the launch pad Photo: CASC

China on Thursday sent the Yaogan-36 remote sensing satellite into preset orbit via a Long March-2D carrier rocket, from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center in Southwest China's Sichuan Province.

The successful flight marked the 50th space launch mission carried out by the Long March rocket family this year, according to China Aerospace Science and Technology Corp (CASC), the state-owned aerospace giant and developer of the Long March rockets.

It was the first time that the Long March rocket family has conducted 50 orbital launches within a year, the CASC said on Thursday. The Long March-2D, with 15 flight missions this year, was the most frequently deployed rocket type this year for orbital launch missions of China.

With 50 successful space launches in 2022, the Long March rocket family has surpassed its previous record of 48 launches set in 2021.

Space observers said that it has definitely been a "Super 2022" for China's space industry, with not only a record-breaking number of orbital launches but also world-amazing qualities.

A Long March-2D carrier rocket on the launch pad Photo: CASC

In 2021, China conducted a total of 55 orbital launches, including 48 by the Long March rocket family and four by the Kuaizhou-1A carrier rocket. It was also the first time that China executed more than 50 launches a year. China held the first place in the world for orbital launches in 2021, the Xinhua News Agency reported on December 30, 2021.

According to Xinhua, 52 out of the 55 launches achieved success and the Long March rocket family nailed all its 48 attempts.

A space watcher who requested not to be identified told the Global Times on Thursday that China's orbital launches have exceeded 60 this year including 51 of the CASC, five of the Kuaizhou series as well as one by the Chinese Academy of Sciences Lijian-1 or the ZK-1A mega solid rocket.

Although this year witnessed a couple of failed attempts in the private space sector such as the latest one by the ZQ-2 on Wednesday, the CERES-1 developed by private rocket firm Galactic Energy made two consecutive launches in 2022.

The space observer noted that the record number of orbital launches also included the epic six launch missions for the construction of the country's first-ever permanent space station.

China has completed the assembly of the three-module T-shaped basic structure of the Tiangong Space Station, and the Wentian and Mengtian lab modules were both launched and then docked with the space station combination this year.

This year also witnessed the launches of two Shenzhou manned spacecraft, and two Tianzhou cargo spacecraft for the construction of the Tiangong Space Station.

Pang Zhihao, a senior space expert based in Beijing, told the Global Times that the total mass of spacecraft launched into space this year will set a new record in China's aerospace history, given that the modules of the space station each surpassed 20 tons, the largest and heaviest spacecraft the country has ever launched.