https://www.universetoday.com/151039...p-like-rocket/
Chinese Company Claims to be Working on a Starship-Like Rocket
...The clear resemblance between CALT’s rocket concept and the
Starship is also in keeping with the way China has monitored SpaceX’s progress practically from inception. As Eric Berger noted in his recently-published book
Liftoff – which recounts the early struggles of SpaceX – a Chinese spy boat was stationed off the coast of Omelek Island (part of the Marshall Islands, South Pacific) in 2006 to watch the inaugural flight of the
Falcon 1.
More recent examples include the incorporation of “
grid fins” to the Long March 2C rocket (similar to the
Falcon 9) for the sake of future reusability, as well as developing the Long March 8 to
land on sea platforms. China’s long-term plan for the
Long March 9 – which will be the country’s most powerful heavy-lift system once it is in service (slated for the 2030s) – includes making it partly reusable.
In the meantime, it is not clear if China plans to develop a Starship-like rocket would include equipping it for missions to the Moon and Mars (in addition to point-to-point suborbital flights). But since regular missions to the Moon and Mars were also part of the roadmap, it’s entirely possible China intends to adopt the Starship design and mission profile in its entirety.......