After a year-long hiatus following a launch failure a Kuaizhou-1A (KZ-1A) rocket has carried out an orbital mission. The launch took place from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, China, at 0619 GMT, 27 September, and placed a single satellite into LEO. The spacecraft carried was identified as Jilin-1 Gaofen-02D, a high-resolution optical satellite for the Jilin-1 Earth imaging constellation.
With a successful return-to-flight under its belt ExPace – the rocket’s builder and part of CASIC – is reportedly hoping to increase its launch cadence to up to 20 missions a year. More immediate plans however, are for its next launch, carrying a sister satellite Jilin-1 Gaofen-02F, which is anticipated in early-October.
