The East China Sea Successfully Completes Its First Commercial Space Launch Mission

The Shanghai Maritime Safety Administration reported on July 22 that Oriental Space’s Gravity1 Y4 launch vehicle was successfully launched that day in the eastern waters off Shanghai, marking the successful completion of the East China Sea’s first commercial space maritime launch mission. This mission also demonstrates further progress in the integration of commercial space and the marine economy, and provides practical experience for the Yangtze River Delta region in building a maritime launch support system. Gravity1 is a mediumlift launch vehicle independently developed by Oriental Space. It has a certain payload capacity for low Earth orbit and sunsynchronous orbit missions, and can meet the launch needs of various small satellites in a multiplesatelliteonerocket configuration. The article notes that mobile offshore launch platforms are highly maneuverable and can flexibly choose launch windows based on sea conditions and weather, helping improve launch efficiency and ease pressure on landbased launch sites. Because the launch area is located along a major East China Sea shipping route with dense vessel traffic and complex meteorological conditions, the Shanghai Maritime Safety Administration formulated a navigation safety assurance plan for the mission and provided fullprocess support in areas such as route planning, anchorage arrangements, onsite security, vessel evacuation, and emergency rescue. Relevant departments said that the next step will be to continue promoting the standardization of maritime commercial space launch support procedures in the Yangtze River Delta.