Galactic Energy Flies Pallas-1 Reusable Rocket to Orbit
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China now has a second privately built rocket capable of reaching orbit with a design meant to be reused, after Galactic Energy flew its Pallas-1 launcher on its maiden orbital mission on 1 September 2026. The rocket lifted off at 10am local time (0200 GMT) from a dedicated pad at the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in Gansu province, carried a test payload to its planned orbit, and completed every objective the company had set for the flight. The first stage was not recovered this time, but it is built to come back and fly again, and that is the part worth paying attention to.
I have watched Chinese launch startups promise reusable hardware for years and then slip their schedules, so a clean orbital debut from a kerosene-fuelled booster with landing legs and grid fins is a real marker. It puts Galactic Energy alongside LandSpace as the two private Chinese firms with an orbital-class rocket designed around reuse, and it narrows, at least on paper, the gap with SpaceX’s Falcon 9.
What actually happened on the pad
Galactic Energy, founded in 2018 and already flying the small solid-fuel Ceres-1 rocket commercially, moved its Pallas-1 (Chinese name Zhishenxing-1) from the factory to the Dongfeng commercial launch zone at Jiuquan over the summer. The 1 September flight was the first time the vehicle had flown at all.
The rocket ran through its full ascent profile, separated its stages, and put its payload into the orbit engineers had targeted. The company said the mission verified the airframe, the propulsion system, the flight computer and the ground infrastructure in one go. Because this was a maiden flight, Galactic Energy chose not to try to land the booster. Instead it planned to gather data on re-entry control, the grid fins, and the braking and deceleration systems it will need before a real landing attempt.
That is the same order of operations SpaceX used a decade ago: fly the rocket, prove it reaches orbit, then start chipping away at recovery on later missions.
The numbers behind Pallas-1
Pallas-1 is a two-stage kerosene and liquid-oxygen rocket. The first stage is powered by seven of Galactic Energy’s own Cangqiong (CQ-50) engines, producing roughly 350 tonnes of thrust at lift-off, with a single vacuum-optimised engine on the second stage. Reported figures for the vehicle vary a little between sources, which is normal this early, but the rocket stands somewhere around 42 to 52 metres tall, is 3.35 metres wide, and weighs a little under 300 tonnes fully fuelled.
Payload capacity is in the range of 5 to 7 tonnes to low Earth orbit, or about 3 tonnes to a 700km sun-synchronous orbit, when the first stage is recovered. The booster is rated for up to 25 flights. Galactic Energy has also described a heavier Pallas-1B that straps three first-stage cores together, in the style of Falcon Heavy, to lift around 17.5 tonnes to low orbit.
Quick reference: Pallas-1 at a glance
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Builder | Galactic Energy (private, founded 2018) |
| Maiden orbital flight | 1 September 2026, 10am local, Jiuquan |
| Configuration | Two stages, kerosene / liquid oxygen |
| First-stage engines | 7 x Cangqiong (CQ-50), ~350 tf thrust |
| Payload to low Earth orbit | ~5 to 7 tonnes (reusable mode) |
| Booster reuse target | Up to 25 flights |
| First-flight recovery | Not attempted; data-gathering only |
| Heavy variant | Pallas-1B, 3 cores, ~17.5 tonnes to LEO |
Why a reusable Chinese rocket matters
The economics of spaceflight changed when Falcon 9 boosters started landing and flying again. A reusable first stage is the single biggest lever on launch cost, and it is the reason SpaceX has been able to fly more mass to orbit than the rest of the world combined for several years running. Every serious launch provider now has to answer the reuse question.
China has made that answer a matter of national policy. Becoming a “space power” is written into the country’s latest five-year plan, and Beijing has leaned on a cluster of private firms to get there faster than the state programme could alone. LandSpace flew its methane-fuelled Zhuque-3 to orbit earlier, iSpace and Deep Blue Aerospace have run hop tests, and Space Pioneer has been working toward its own orbital debut. Galactic Energy reaching orbit with Pallas-1 adds a second credible reusable option to that list.
There is also a constellation angle. China is building out large low-orbit broadband networks that need hundreds of launches. Cheap, reusable domestic rockets are what make those plans affordable, in the same way Falcon 9 underpins SpaceX’s own satellite business.
What is still unproven
An orbital launch is a milestone, not a finish line. Galactic Energy has not yet landed a booster, has not reflown one, and has not published a per-kilogram price that customers can hold it to. Recovery is genuinely hard, as several Chinese firms have found with boosters that reached orbit but missed the landing. The company will need a string of successful recoveries and reflights before Pallas-1 changes anyone’s launch bill.
It is also worth being clear-eyed about the funding backdrop. Chinese commercial space has drawn heavy state-linked investment as part of the same strategic tech push driving money into domestic AI champions and chipmaking. That capital gets rockets built, but it also means these companies are judged partly on national goals, not only on whether the unit economics close.
Still, the trajectory is clear enough. Two years ago the question was whether any Chinese private firm could match Falcon 9’s basic capability. Now there are two vehicles in that class, and the contest has moved on to who can actually land and reuse one.
Frequently asked questions
Did the Pallas-1 booster land like a Falcon 9?
No. Galactic Energy did not attempt a landing on this first flight. The booster is designed for vertical landing with grid fins and deployable legs, but the maiden mission was about proving the rocket could reach orbit and collecting re-entry data first.
How does Pallas-1 compare to SpaceX’s Falcon 9?
They are in a similar class. Falcon 9 lifts about 17 tonnes to low orbit expendable and lands its booster routinely; Pallas-1 is smaller, carries roughly 5 to 7 tonnes in reusable mode, and has not yet flown its booster twice. The design intent is the same, the flight record is not.
Who is Galactic Energy?
A private Chinese launch company founded in 2018. It already runs commercial missions with the small solid-fuel Ceres-1 rocket and has been developing the larger, reusable Pallas-1 as its main growth vehicle.
When will China try to land the booster?
Galactic Energy has said recovery attempts will come on later Pallas-1 flights, after it has validated the re-entry and deceleration systems. It has not given a firm date.
What will Pallas-1 be used for?
Mid-sized satellite launches, including batches for China’s planned low-orbit broadband constellations, plus commercial rideshare missions. The heavier Pallas-1B would handle larger single payloads.
Reporting drawn from Galactic Energy’s mission statements and coverage by the South China Morning Post and Space.com. For the full vehicle spec sheet and launch history, see the Pallas-1 entry on Wikipedia.
Jared is a tech journalist covering product launches, industry news, and the culture around technology. He has been reporting on the consumer tech beat for more than eight years.
