Long March 9

Long March 9 (Chinese: 长征九号火箭, romanized: Chángzhēng jiǔ hào, LM-9 or Changzheng 9, CZ-9) is a partially reusable super-heavy lift rocket under development by the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology to launch from Wenchang Space Launch Site. It is the largest proposed member of the Long March rocket family. The most recent 2023 proposal calls for a three-stage rocket with a 10.6 meter diameter. The reusable first stage would use a cluster of 30 YF-215 methalox engines, with long term plans to make the second stage reusable; these features and previous designs have drawn comparisons to SpaceX Starship. The third stage may use YF-79 or YF-91 hydrolox engines. Current plans call for the Long March 9 to have a maximum payload capacity of 150,000 kg to low Earth orbit (LEO) and 54,000 kg to trans-lunar injection. Its first flight is planned for 2033, in anticipation of an increase in cadence by China's crewed lunar missions during the 2030s and the construction of the International Lunar Research Station with 12 other countries. The smaller under-development Long March 10 rocket is intended for initial crewed landings. The Chinese space program has also proposed CZ-9 launches for crewed missions to Mars and space-based solar power and data centers. It was initially proposed to carry the Tianwen-3 Mars sample-return mission in a single launch; in 2022 this mission plan was revised to dual launches in 2028 using the Long March 5.