For years, the rockets that carried China’s large internet satellites into space were built by state teams. That changed on 15 September 2026. At 2:26 in the afternoon, a rocket named Zhuque-2E Y7 rose from a commercial space site in the desert. It carried ten satellites and placed every one of them into its planned orbit.
The flight was the ninth for the Zhuque-2 family, and the first time a private Chinese company had taken on the task of building a large satellite constellation. A constellation is a group of satellites that work together to cover the whole country. Building one is not a single job but a long process.
Sending many satellites up on one rocket is harder than it sounds. Engineers must fit the satellites to the rocket, decide the order in which they are released, guide them along the right paths, and make sure the empty rocket stage does not become space junk. The company spent months preparing interfaces, flight programs and ground tests.
The rocket itself is a medium-sized vehicle that burns liquid oxygen and methane. Its carrying capacity is six tonnes. This flight reached an altitude of 900 kilometres, a first for a private Chinese rocket. Earlier missions of the same family had already cut the gap between two launches to just 26 days.
Experts say the real test is not one successful launch. What matters is whether a company can build rockets steadily, launch them often, and keep costs low. The same company is developing a reusable rocket that can land and fly again. A private firm is now part of the country’s space infrastructure, not just a spectator.
Words to know:
- satellite (卫星)
- orbit (轨道)
- constellation (星座；此处指卫星星座)
- release (释放，投放)
- altitude (高度，海拔)
- reusable (可重复使用的)
- steadily (稳定地，持续地)
- infrastructure (基础设施)
长难句拆解 · 并列表语 + 过去完成时
例句：The flight was the ninth for the Zhuque-2 family, and the first time a private Chinese company had taken on the task of building a large satellite constellation.
主干是 The flight was the ninth …, and the first time …（主语 the flight，系动词 was 后接两个并列的表语）。the ninth 后面省略了 flight，序数词后省略名词是英文常见写法。
the first time 后接 过去完成时 had taken，表示「到那次飞行时为止，这是第一次」，动作发生在过去的过去。of building 是动名词短语作定语，修饰 the task。
直译：这次飞行是朱雀二号系列的第 9 次，也是一家中国民营公司首次承担建造大型卫星星座的任务。
同义替换 · 雅思阅读利器
下面 6 组替换都出自本文，右侧是对应的替换说法，点开核对。
- rose from a commercial space site → lifted off from a commercial launch site（rose 与 lifted off 同义，后者更专业）
- placed every one of them into its planned orbit → put each of them into its intended orbit（placed 与 put 常互换）
- took on the task → assumed the job（take on 与 assume 同义，后者更正式）
- harder than it sounds → more difficult than it appears（sounds 与 appears 都是感官系动词）
- make sure the empty stage does not become space junk → ensure the used stage does not turn into space debris（make sure 与 ensure 同义）
- cut the gap between two launches → shortened the interval between two missions（cut the gap 与 shorten the interval 对应）
阅读自测 · 3 题
三道题分别对应细节、因果与词汇，先不看答案。
-
- 判断正误（T / F / NG）：The Zhuque-2E Y7 rocket placed ten satellites into their planned orbits.
-
- 简答：Why is sending many satellites on one rocket difficult?
-
- 选词填空：This flight reached an ______ of 900 kilometres.（A. altitude B. attitude C. longitude）
参考答案与解析
每题给出答案与判断依据，注意最后提到的干扰项套路。
-
- T（正确）。第一段末句写 It carried ten satellites and placed every one of them into its planned orbit，与题干完全一致。原文的 every one 等于题干表述，属同义改写而非无中生有。
-
- Because engineers must fit the satellites to the rocket, decide the release order, guide their paths, and prevent the used rocket stage from becoming space junk. 依据在第三段第二句，属直接定位。
-
- A. altitude。altitude 意为高度，与文中 900 kilometres 搭配。attitude 是态度，longitude 是经度，二者都是形近干扰项，做题时看词形不如看词义。
中文译文
多年来，把中国的大型互联网卫星送入太空的火箭，都由国家队研制。这一局面在 2026 年 9 月 15 日发生了变化。当天下午 2 时 26 分，一枚名为朱雀二号改进型遥七的火箭从沙漠中的商业航天发射场升空，携带 10 颗卫星，并把它们全部送入了预定轨道。
这是朱雀二号系列的第 9 次飞行，也是一家中国民营公司首次承担建造大型卫星星座的任务。星座，是协同工作、共同覆盖全国的一组卫星。建造星座不是一次性的活儿，而是一个漫长的过程。
用一枚火箭把多颗卫星送上天，比听起来要难。工程师必须让卫星与火箭相互适配，确定释放的先后次序，引导它们沿正确的路径飞行，还要确保用过的火箭末级不会变成太空垃圾。这家公司花了数月时间准备接口、飞行程序和地面测试。
这枚火箭本身是一型中型的液氧甲烷火箭，运力为 6 吨。本次飞行达到了 900 公里的高度，这在中国民营火箭中尚属首次。同一系列的早前任务，已经把两次发射之间的间隔缩短到 26 天。
专家说，真正的考验不是一次发射成功，而是一家公司能不能稳定造箭、高频发射、把成本压住。这家公司还在研制可回收复用、能降落再飞的火箭。民营企业如今已是国家航天基础设施的一部分，而不只是旁观者。