This long-exposure photo shows a Long March-10B carrier rocket blasting off from the Hainan commercial spacecraft launch site in Wenchang, south China's Hainan Province, July 10, 2026.

China successfully launched the Long March-10B carrier rocket here on Friday, achieving its first-ever controlled recovery of a carrier rocket's first stage.

The rocket, in its maiden flight, sent the payload into the preset orbit.

After the separation of the rocket's first and second stages, the first stage returned and was successfully captured on a seaborne platform via a net-capture system. Both the launch and the first-stage recovery were successfully completed.

This mission marked China's first successful controlled recovery of a carrier rocket's first stage, representing a major breakthrough in the country's reusable rocket technology. (Xinhua/Pu Xiaoxu)