China's largest space launch vehicle, the Long March 7 flies, with a Technological Triple Whammy

The first Long March 7 flight took off from Wenchang, Hainan Island on June 25, 2016; to test new technologies in orbit that included space debris removal, satellite refueling and China's next generation manned spacecraft. On June 25, 2016, the Long March 7 rocket, China's largest space launch vehicle to date, blasted off from Wenchang, Hainan to a successful maiden flight. With a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) payload of 13.5 tons, the CZ-7 is China's new medium space launch rocket (the heavy Long March 5 will have its first flight later this year as well). In addition to that nice milestone for China's space program, the CZ-7 carried three important payloads in its cargo. The Tianyuan 1 satellite refueling system was carried in the upper stage of the first LM-7 rocket, and tested successfully days after the June 25th launch.