U.S. Confirms China Has Launched What Could Be Its Version Of The X-37B Spaceplane
The reusable experimental spacecraft was launched into space on a secret mission from Inner Mongolia earlier today.
Tag: Shenlong
China Reveals Wind Tunnel Tests Of Space Plane-Launching High-Speed Mothership Aircraft
The China Academy of Aerospace Aerodynamics, or CAAA, has released pictures and a brief video showing a wind tunnel test of a model of a two-stage-to-orbit space launch system involving a fast- and high-flying mothership aircraft that carries a reusable spacecraft on top of its fuselage. Though this general concept has been around for decades, there has been a major resurgence of interest in it around the world in recent years amid growing demand for flexible, rapid, and unpredictable space launch options.