Chinese Company Conducts Fifth Sea-Based Rocket Launch
by Riko Seibo
Tokyo, Japan (SPX) May 20, 2025

Galactic Energy, a Beijing-based private rocket manufacturer, successfully completed its fifth sea-based launch of the Ceres 1 carrier rocket on Monday. The rocket lifted off at 3:38 pm from a modified deck barge in the Yellow Sea off the coast of Shandong Province, delivering four satellites into a low-Earth orbit approximately 850 kilometers above the planet.

The satellites, developed by Beijing's Guodian Gaoke, will join the Tianqi Network, which now consists of 37 satellites. This network supports data collection for the internet of things (IoT) and is utilized in sectors like forestry, agriculture, tourism, and environmental protection.

Galactic Energy has now conducted 20 orbital missions with its Ceres 1 rocket, deploying a total of 81 commercial satellites, significantly outpacing other private competitors in China.

The company's first sea-based mission occurred in September 2023, also off the coast of Shandong, launching four Tianqi satellites. Subsequent missions included a second in May with four satellites, a third in August deploying six satellites, and a fourth in December with four more satellites.

China has conducted 16 sea-based launches to date, using four rocket types: Long March 11, Smart Dragon 3, Ceres 1, and Gravity 1.

The Ceres 1 is a 20-meter-tall, solid-propellant rocket with a 1.4-meter diameter and a liftoff weight of 33 metric tons. It is capable of carrying a 300-kilogram payload to a 500-kilometer sun-synchronous orbit or a 350-kilogram payload to a 200-kilometer low-Earth orbit.

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