2 min readUpdated: Aug 12, 2026 10:21 AM IST
A Chinese rocket set to launch a communication satellite into orbit exploded seconds after liftoff on Monday.
The Long March 7A rocket carrying the ChinaSat-4B satellite erupted into massive fireball after developing an in-flight anomaly after blasting off from the Wenchang Space Launch Site on the island of Hainan on Monday night. The Long March 7A is a medium-lift rocket designed for high-orbit missions.
Videos surfaced on social media showed the rocket conducting a successful lift-off, which was followed by explosion roughly 85 seconds after the take-off. Both the rocket and the ChinaSat-4B satellite were destroyed in the explosion.
WATCH: Chinese Long March 7A (CZ-7A) rocket exploded during first-stage flight, roughly 85 seconds after liftoff from the Wenchang Space Launch Site in Hainan.
It was the vehicle’s 18th flight and only its second failure.pic.twitter.com/YSNgGVmylL
— Clash Report (@clashreport) August 10, 2026
According to China’s Xinhua news agency, the rocket blasted off at 8:02 pm (local time) and that the mission was unsuccessful.
The videos showed the rocket carrying the satellite turning into a fireball before it reached the orbit. The cause behind the failure is under investigation.
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