Chinese commercial and state-owned developers are racing to achieve an orbital-class booster to match the US.

The Long March 12A, China’s first state-owned reusable rocket, made its debut launch on Tuesday morning but the recovery of the first stage was a failure. It was China’s second failed bid this month to return an orbital-class booster, a feat that has so far only been achieved by the US. The reusable rocket, designed by the Shanghai Academy of Spaceflight Technology under the China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation, was launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in China’s…

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