Reshaping the economic boundaries of commercial space with technology, Weiguang Qihang launched the all-carbon fiber liquid rocket "Weiguang-1".
Recently, China's commercial space industry has achieved a crucial leap in the autonomy of core technologies. It is reported that the overall plan of the "Weiguang-1" medium-sized liquid reusable launch vehicle of "Weiguang Qihang" Company has successfully passed the authoritative review, marking that the core design and engineering path of this type of rocket have been officially recognized, and the R & D work has fully entered the engineering implementation stage.
This rocket is a liquid launch vehicle that deeply integrates three cutting - edge technologies of "full - flow staged combustion cycle power + all - carbon fiber composite materials + liquid oxygen methane", marking that China's commercial space industry has officially entered the 2.0 era of "dual - driven by materials and power".
Three Core Technologies Build System - Level Innovation
The "Weiguang - 1" is not a simple stack of technologies, but a systematic project aiming to reconstruct the economic boundary of rockets. Its core breakthroughs are reflected in three technological paths: First, the power system has achieved a leap - forward breakthrough. The self - developed "Huaguang - 1" engine has a combustion efficiency of over 99.2%, which increases the carrying capacity by more than 30% compared with traditional engines (≤95%), providing a fundamental guarantee for the low - cost recovery and reuse of the rocket.
Second, revolutionary progress has been made in the field of materials. By breaking through the high - performance low - temperature - resistant liquid oxygen - compatible resin technology, the "Weiguang - 1" has achieved 90% carbon fiberization of the rocket body structure, reducing the weight by 25% - 30% compared with traditional metal materials. It is widely circulated in the aerospace field that "every kilogram of weight reduction is directly converted into one kilogram of precious payload". This technology brings a 10% increase in the rocket's carrying capacity and a 25% increase in economic benefits.
Third, the choice of propellant is highly commercially forward - looking. Liquid oxygen methane has unique advantages such as low cost, easy availability, and less coking. It is an ideal choice for realizing the rapid turnaround and high - frequency reuse of rockets, perfectly meeting the needs of commercial operations.
AI - Driven R & D and Engineering Results Verify Technical Feasibility
The technological breakthroughs of Weiguang Qihang are not just on paper but have been verified by multiple engineering experiments. The overall plan of the "Weiguang - 1" and the general process plan of the carbon fiber common - bottom tank have passed the review of more than a dozen national - level experts, marking that the core technologies and engineering paths have been recognized at the top level.
In the R & D process, Weiguang Qihang deeply integrates AI technology, significantly improving the design efficiency and system intelligence level. The company has reached strategic cooperation with Leap71 in the UAE and Shanghai Jizhan Technology, introducing the advanced "AI + computational engineering" technology in the industry, aiming to reshape the rocket R & D paradigm. This cooperation deeply applies AI to the design of the "Huaguang - 1" engine of the "Weiguang - 1" rocket, enabling ultra - large - scale parameter optimization, compressing the design iteration cycle from several months to several days, and exploring original innovative configurations that are difficult to achieve by traditional methods, thereby enhancing the rocket's performance, reliability, and international competitiveness from the source.
In terms of manufacturing technology, Weiguang Qihang has achieved innovation in the engine and rocket body structure through advanced 3D printing technology. The company uses 3D printing technology to manufacture key engine components such as the combustion chamber and combines continuous fiber 3D printing technology to produce complex rocket structural brackets and some rocket body components. These technological approaches not only significantly shorten the iteration cycle and reduce manufacturing costs but also achieve extreme lightweight and high - strength components, providing a fundamental guarantee for the weight reduction, efficiency improvement, and low - cost reusability of the rocket, fully demonstrating the core value of advanced manufacturing technology in the commercial space industry.
In terms of key technology verification, the 1.4 - meter and 3.35 - meter diameter carbon fiber tanks have successfully passed the low - temperature, sealing, and pressure tests in a liquid oxygen environment, and the liquid oxygen compatibility has passed the 98J mechanical impact assessment, proving the safety and reliability of the material system.
Innovative Recovery Scheme and Extreme Launch Efficiency
The "Weiguang - 1" shows significant advantages in technical indicators. Especially in the recovery and reuse state, the loss of carrying capacity is controlled within 10%, while the industry average is 20% - 40%. This means that "recovery" is no longer a huge sacrifice of performance but a real economic benefit.
The rocket uses the innovative "ship - tower adaptive encircling recovery" technology. There are no vulnerable structures such as outriggers on the ship, enabling non - destructive recovery at sea and automatic ground processing. Combined with the aerodynamic drag - increasing and deceleration design, the self - weight of the recovery system is extremely low, further ensuring the carrying capacity. At the same time, the upper stage has the ability to ignite more than 20 times, supporting multi - satellite deployment in different orbits and active de - orbiting at the last stage, achieving "zero space debris". Both the first stage and the fairing can be recovered, achieving "no debris" in the launch area, which will greatly simplify the launch process and reduce insurance costs.
National Team Provides Support
The core team of Weiguang Qihang is led by the chief designers and general assembly leaders of national - level core units such as the former China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology and the Academy of Aerospace Propulsion Technology, with an average work experience of more than 20 years. The team has a cumulative experience of developing more than 50 models from scratch and more than 100 successful flight tests, covering the entire chain of "design - materials - manufacturing - general assembly - launch - operation". This team composition of "understanding both technology and engineering" provides the strongest endorsement for the high success rate and low R & D risk of the project.
Aiming at the Trillion - Dollar Space Economy Market
In terms of commercial prospects, the "Weiguang - 1" has set a highly competitive cost target: the one - time use cost is less than 20,000 yuan per kilogram, and the recovery and reuse cost is less than 5,000 yuan per kilogram. When the cost drops to the thousand - yuan level, it will unlock a trillion - dollar new market including space manufacturing, on - orbit services, and deep - space exploration.
It is estimated that the constellations such as the planned Star Network and G60 in China alone will bring a clear demand of more than 11,000 tons and 1,100 launches, corresponding to a launch service market of about 440 billion yuan. Weiguang Qihang is expected to become the most capable supplier to meet this rigid demand at a "rock - bottom price".
The company has completed tens of millions of yuan in angel - round financing from Northern Industrial Institutions, proving the firm recognition of the team and the technical route by professional industrial capital. Its business model is clearly planned: from rocket launch services, it will extend to power system sales and space application services, aiming to achieve a gross profit margin of more than 60% and a net profit margin of more than 40%.
Looking to the Future
According to the plan, Weiguang Qihang will achieve commercial operation in 2028, conduct recovery tests in 2029, and achieve normal reuse in 2030. With the commercial space industry being written into the national government work report for two consecutive years and being listed as a "strategic emerging industry" and a "new growth engine", Weiguang Qihang is injecting new vitality into China's commercial space industry through solid technological innovation and also enabling the global commercial space market to see the power of Chinese innovation.
With the advancement of the development of the "Weiguang - 1", China's commercial space industry is expected to occupy an important position in international competition and contribute Chinese solutions to the global space economy.