Lightning strikes Chinese rocket during launch

Lightning struck a rocket during launch from a cosmodrome in China.

Consensus

A lightning strike occurred during the launch of a Chinese Long March-3B rocket.
The launch took place on July 23 from the Xichang Space Center in Sichuan Province, China.
The rocket was launched from pad No. 2 at 15:00 Moscow time.
The lightning struck approximately 30 to 35 seconds after liftoff.
The lightning hit the rocket's nose cone and traveled through the vehicle and engine exhaust into the ground.
The rocket successfully placed the Tianlian-2-06 satellite onto its intended orbit.
The satellite is part of the Tianlian-2 series for data relay and telemetry support.
The spacecraft and its systems were not damaged, as the design includes protection against such electrical events.
This was the sixth launch in the Tianlian-2 series and the 52nd space launch by China in 2024.

The launch involved a different rocket, the Kinetica 1 Y15, from the Jiuquan Space Center, and delivered five satellites for space monitoring, Earth observation, and technology testing. — interfax
The lightning strike occurred around 30 seconds after liftoff, slightly earlier than the 35 seconds reported by other sources. — fontanka
The launch was described as successful and the satellite was placed into a transfer orbit to geostationary orbit. — vm
The launch was reported by News.ru citing China Now, and the satellite was referred to as 'Tianlian-2'. — m24