China test-fires new solid booster for next generation rocket

BEIJING, July 7 (Xinhua) -- China had successfully finished the first joint hot-fire test of a new solid-fuel booster engine and its servomechanism system, the manufacture said Saturday.

With a diameter of two meters, the booster engine is expected to be used on China's next generation medium-sized carrier rocket, according to a China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation statement.

The segmented design was used in the engine, making it the most powerful solid-fuel engine at present, the statement said.