Chinese startup Mega Engine advances reusable staged-combustion rocket engine

spacenews.com May 26, 2026

Chinese startup Mega Engine advances reusable staged-combustion rocket engine

Curated by Shubham · TechCapsules · May 26, 2026

AI-summarised brief · reviewed before publication

Chinese startup Mega Engine Technology has successfully conducted a long-duration hot fire test of its closed-cycle kerosene-liquid oxygen engine, dubbed "Chi". The engine accumulated 1,000 seconds of run time at rated conditions, with total program test accumulation reaching 2,000 seconds. The Chi engine is designed to produce throttleable thrust and can be reused with variable thrust and multiple restarts. The company aims to become a supplier of engines for second and upper stages of launch companies. Mega Engine has demonstrated rapid development, having begun operations in early 2024. The successful tests mark the emergence of a new propulsion supplier in China's commercial space sector, with the company also planning to introduce a more powerful engine, the "Yan", in 2026, targeting heavy-lift capabilities with a 200-ton-class closed-cycle kerolox engine.

💡 Why It Matters

· Mega Engine's rapid development and technical maturity underscore China's civil-military fusion policy, where state defense-industrial expertise flows into commercial ventures.
· The company's oxygen-rich staged combustion technology may offer a specific impulse advantage over existing engines.

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