分类： technology

Beijing’s Economic-Technological Development Area, known as E-Town, has launched a groundbreaking initiative called ‘Beijing Rocket Street’ to transform China’s commercial aerospace sector through shared infrastructure and collaborative platforms. This innovative approach addresses critical industry challenges while accelerating satellite and rocket production capabilities.

The comprehensive project, spanning 145,000 square meters, represents China’s first shared commercial aerospace research and production base. The facility has completed final inspections and is now transitioning to operational status, featuring four specialized zones: a common technology platform, innovation and research center, high-end manufacturing center, and display/operations control center.

This development comes as China’s commercial space sector demonstrates remarkable growth. Official data reveals that in 2025, the country conducted 50 commercial space launches—representing over half of all missions—while deploying 311 commercial satellites that accounted for 84% of total orbital placements.

According to Zhang Rusheng, deputy director of the commercial aerospace department at the China National Space Administration, ‘Commercial aerospace has progressed across the full industrial chain, from research and development to satellite launches, tracking and control, and downstream applications.’ He emphasized Beijing’s evolving role as a global innovation hub shaping the sector’s development trajectory.

The shared infrastructure model specifically addresses industry pain points including fragmented resources, redundant testing facility investments, and infrastructure limitations that particularly affect private companies. The Rocket Street initiative offers more than 10 specialized services, including vibration testing, thermal vacuum analysis, and separation testing for both rockets and satellites.

Ma Zhao, deputy director at E-Town’s robotics and intelligent manufacturing industry bureau, explained the strategic vision: ‘This initiative is designed to expand industrial development space and strengthen industry support with shared platforms. By doing so, we aim to release new productive capacity while boosting confidence across the industry.’

E-Town has emerged as China’s most concentrated commercial aerospace cluster, with rockets developed in the area accounting for 24 launches in 2025—more than 90% of the nation’s commercial rocket missions. Industry leaders have welcomed the supportive ecosystem, with Galactic Energy’s vice-president Xia Dongkun highlighting benefits in talent acquisition, investment facilitation, and insurance solutions.

The innovation extends beyond traditional aerospace boundaries. Liu Chang, co-founder of Galaxy Space, noted the advantage of E-Town’s cutting-edge industrial foundation, including intelligent driving systems and embodied intelligent robotics. The company plans to establish a factory with annual production capacity for 500 satellites, potentially becoming China’s largest facility for mass-producing low Earth orbit satellites using extensive automation.

Looking forward, E-Town officials outlined ambitious plans focusing on reusable rockets, satellite internet technologies, future space innovations, and next-generation infrastructure. The development area aims to attract up to 1,000 companies, support over 1,000 commercial rocket launches, and generate hundreds of billions of yuan in revenue, solidifying Beijing’s position as a national center for high-quality commercial aerospace advancement.

The northern Chinese border city of Heihe has solidified its position as the world’s premier destination for cold climate automotive testing, leveraging its uniquely frigid conditions to drive innovation in new energy vehicle technology and aerospace systems. During the recently concluded fifth Heihe Cold Region Automobile Testing Festival, temperatures plunged to -23°C as engineers from leading manufacturers conducted rigorous evaluations on the frozen surfaces of the Heilongjiang River.

This remote city, where temperatures can reach an astonishing -48°C, now commands an impressive 85% of China’s national market share and 45% of the global market for cold-weather vehicle testing. The 2024-25 testing season attracted 147 companies and research institutions, including industry giants Tesla, BYD, FAW, and SAIC, with more than 4,000 test vehicles evaluated by 5,000 technical personnel.

The economic impact has been substantial, generating 170 million yuan ($24.4 million) in direct testing fees and approximately 430 million yuan in related service industry revenue encompassing hospitality, tourism, and logistics.

According to Wang Luyang, an engineer from SAIC-GM-Wuling, “Heihe represents an exceptionally rare testing environment where battery endurance, cold-start performance, and braking systems can be comprehensively evaluated under extreme low-temperature conditions that remain a critical technical challenge for new energy vehicles.”

The city’s transformation from hosting China’s first frigid condition automobile tests in 1989 to its current status as a global testing hub reflects strategic government planning and substantial infrastructure investment. A landmark 260,000-square-meter all-season low-temperature testing facility, currently in final construction phases, will become the world’s largest facility capable of offseason testing for traditional, new energy, and intelligent connected vehicles.

Heihe’s testing capabilities have now expanded beyond terrestrial vehicles to include drones and flying cars, capitalizing on the emerging low-altitude economy. The city recently hosted the inaugural test flight of China’s domestically produced C919 commercial aircraft and has established Asia’s largest mobile outdoor icing wind tunnel project in the Wudalianchi scenic area.

Xu Lei, an expert at the China Automotive Engineering Research Institute, notes that “Heihe has systematically developed a comprehensive cold-region vehicle testing ecosystem encompassing technical standards, service assurance, and industrial extension through sustained government investment and strategic planning.”

China has marked a historic milestone in space technology by successfully executing the first-ever metal 3D printing experiment in orbit. This groundbreaking achievement represents a quantum leap in the nation’s extraterrestrial manufacturing capabilities and positions China at the forefront of space-based industrial technology.

The pioneering experiment was conducted aboard the Lihong-1 Y1 suborbital vehicle, a commercially developed recoverable spacecraft designed for space tourism operations. Following its successful inaugural test flight from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center on January 12th, the spacecraft carried specialized scientific equipment developed by the Institute of Mechanics under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS).

Upon crossing the Kármán line—the internationally recognized boundary separating Earth’s atmosphere from outer space—at an altitude of approximately 120 kilometers, the payload autonomously fabricated metal components under microgravity conditions. This successful demonstration transitions China’s metal additive manufacturing technology from theoretical ground-based research to practical in-space engineering verification.

The CAS emphasized the extraordinary complexity of conducting metal additive manufacturing in space, where factors such as microgravity, extreme temperatures, and vacuum conditions present significant engineering challenges. Research teams overcame critical obstacles including stable material transport and formation processes, full-process closed-loop control systems, and ensuring high-reliability coordination between the experimental payload and launch vehicle.

Following completion of the experiment, the payload capsule successfully returned to Earth via parachute-assisted landing, delivering invaluable firsthand data to scientists. Researchers have obtained crucial information regarding melt pool dynamics, material transport mechanisms, solidification behavior, and the geometric precision and mechanical properties of space-manufactured components.

The Lihong-1 Y1 vehicle, noted for its cost-effectiveness and operational flexibility, has demonstrated its capability as a reliable platform for space technology verification. This breakthrough is expected to significantly accelerate the development of China’s space manufacturing capabilities and serve as a critical enabler for future orbital infrastructure development, potentially revolutionizing how space missions approach manufacturing, repair, and construction beyond Earth.

China has marked a monumental advancement in space technology by successfully executing its inaugural metal 3D printing experiment in orbit. This pioneering achievement represents a critical transition from terrestrial research to practical space-based engineering verification, positioning China at the global forefront of in-orbit manufacturing capabilities.

The groundbreaking experiment was conducted using a specialized retrievable scientific payload developed by the Chinese Academy of Sciences’ Institute of Mechanics. The equipment traveled aboard the Lihong-1 Y1, a commercial recoverable suborbital vehicle engineered by CAS Space primarily for space tourism applications. On January 12th, the spacecraft launched from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center in northwest China, reaching an altitude of approximately 120 kilometers and crossing the Kármán line—the recognized boundary between Earth’s atmosphere and outer space.

Upon achieving microgravity conditions, the system autonomously fabricated metal components, overcoming extraordinary challenges unique to the space environment. Researchers conquered complex obstacles including stable material transport in weightlessness, full-process closed-loop control systems, and seamless coordination between the experimental payload and launch vehicle.

Following the mission, the payload capsule safely returned to Earth via parachute-assisted landing, enabling scientists to recover invaluable data on melt pool dynamics, material transport mechanisms, solidification behavior, and the geometric precision and mechanical properties of space-manufactured components.

The Lihong-1 Y1 vehicle, celebrated for its cost-effectiveness and operational flexibility, demonstrated its viability as a platform for scientific experimentation. Beyond the 3D printing apparatus, the mission also transported precious rose seeds for agricultural research purposes.

According to deputy chief designer Wang Yingcheng, ongoing development focuses on incorporating crew-life-support systems and high-reliability escape technologies, potentially enhancing both low-cost suborbital research capabilities and commercial space tourism prospects. This breakthrough establishes a foundation for future space infrastructure development and advanced manufacturing operations beyond Earth’s atmosphere.