You’ve seen SpaceX’s Falcon 9 countless times, but what about Deep Blue Aerospace’s Nebula-1 rocket? Well, this startup nearly completed a vertical takeoff and landing test from Ejina Banner Spaceport in Inner Mongolia, China, on September 22, 2024, but with one small mishap.
Everything went well during the test, except during its descent, where one small issue caused the spacecraft to erupt into flames. However, this flight marks China’s first high-altitude recovery test of a launch vehicle that can enter orbit. The core mission objective was to verify the accuracy and coordination of the various systems in the vertical recovery phase after the Xingyun-1 enters orbit. Deep Blue Aerospace managed to reach 10 of the 11 objectives during this test.
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After the test, a preliminary retrospective analysis of the test process data showed that during the final landing shutdown phase, the engine thrust servo followed the control command abnormally, causing the rocket body to land at a height exceeding the design range and partial damage to the rocket body,” said the agency.
