China’s Long March 7A rocket exploded about 85 seconds after liftoff from Wenchang, destroying the ChinaSat-4B communications satellite during the failed mission.

BulletsIn

• China’s Long March 7A rocket launched on 10 August 2026 from the Wenchang Space Launch Site on Hainan Island, southern China.
• The rocket encountered a serious in-flight anomaly approximately 85 seconds after liftoff during the first-stage flight phase.
• The malfunction caused the launch vehicle to break apart at low altitude, producing a large fireball and thick black smoke.
• The ChinaSat-4B communications satellite was lost after the rocket failed before reaching its intended orbital trajectory.
• Long March 7A is a Chinese launch vehicle designed to deploy satellites into higher-energy orbital missions from the Wenchang Space Launch Site.
• The rocket uses YF-100 liquid-fuel engines, a technology also used across several other Chinese launch vehicle families.
• The latest incident marks the second Long March 7A failure among 18 missions, following its unsuccessful maiden launch in March 2020.
• Chinese authorities confirmed on 11 August 2026 that an investigation was underway to determine the technical cause behind the failure.