China has launched its top-secret military spaceplane for a third time, days after the US military\u2019s winged spacecraft was grounded for several weeks due to problems with its SpaceX rocket.<\/p>\n
Observers believe China\u2019s spaceplane looks much like the US military\u2019s X-37B, a reusable craft that Pentagon officials are similarly tight-lipped about. But there\u2019s a distinction in that US officials will publicly discuss, at least in broad terms, the purpose of the X-37B and release images of the spacecraft.<\/p>\n
The US military has two X-37Bs in its inventory, each with a cargo bay that could fit a large refrigerator. They resemble small space shuttles, with dimensions about one-quarter those of NASA\u2019s retired shuttle orbiters. The X-37B spaceplanes have flown in space six times, logging missions as long as two-and-a-half years, thanks to deployable solar panels that generate power for greater endurance.<\/p>\n
The seventh X-37B flight was supposed to launch this week from Florida, but officials called off the launch to resolve technical issues with its Falcon Heavy rocket.<\/p>\n
Then, on Thursday, China sent its own spaceplane aloft on a Long March 2F rocket from the Jiuquan launch base in northwestern China. The Long March 2F is typically used to launch Chinese astronaut crews into orbit but has been modified to accommodate China\u2019s unpiloted robotic spaceplane inside its payload fairing.<\/p>\n
There\u2019s no suggestion that the US and Chinese spaceplanes are spying on one another because their orbits do not bring them close together. However, the supposed similarities between the US and Chinese military spaceplanes are hard to ignore.<\/p>\n
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\u201cIt\u2019s no surprise that the Chinese are extremely interested in our spaceplane, and we\u2019re extremely interested in theirs,\u201d said Gen. Chance Saltzman, the US Space Force\u2019s senior officer serving as the military\u2019s chief of Space Operations. \u201cThe ability to put something into orbit, do some things, and bring it home and take a look at the results is powerful.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese are the two of the most watched objects on orbit while they\u2019re on orbit,\u201d Saltzman said Wednesday in response to a question from Ars at the Space Force Association\u2019s Spacepower Conference in Orlando, Florida.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s probably no coincidence that they\u2019re trying to match us in timing and sequence of this,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n
In a brief statement, China\u2019s top state-owned space industry contractor, CASC, referred to the payload on Thursday\u2019s super-secret rocket launch as a \u201creusable test spacecraft.\u201d China hasn\u2019t published any photos.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe test spacecraft will operate in orbit for a period of time and then return to a scheduled landing site in China,\u201d CASC said. \u201cDuring this period, reusable technology verification and space science experiments will be carried out as planned to provide technical support for the peaceful use of space.\u201d<\/p>\n
Despite describing the spaceplane as a vehicle for peaceful use, Chinese officials closely guard details about it. In all likelihood, the spaceplane is actually carrying out a military mission, perhaps testing new space technology for use in various military applications like surveillance, propulsion, or communication.<\/p>\n
This is the third flight of China\u2019s spaceplane, following a 2020 mission that lasted two days and the longer 276-day mission that ended in May. On both missions, China\u2019s winged spacecraft released a small object in orbit, perhaps to shadow the spaceplane and test rendezvous, proximity operations, or in-orbit inspection tech.<\/p>\n
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On both occasions, the Chinese spaceplane returned for landing on a runway near the Lop Nur nuclear testing site in northwestern China.<\/p>\n
The US military\u2019s network of space-tracking assets quickly detected the Chinese spaceplane in orbit. Publicly available data from the US military show China\u2019s spaceplane flying Thursday in a near-circular low-Earth orbit at an altitude of about 210 miles (340 kilometers), with an inclination of about 50 degrees to the equator. This is almost identical to the orbit achieved on China\u2019s first spaceplane mission in 2020, while the second spaceplane flight launched into a more eccentric, or elliptical, orbit before maneuvering on its own to reach a stable perch some 375 miles (600 kilometers) above Earth.<\/p>\n
The Long March 2F rocket used to launch China\u2019s spaceplane can haul more than 8 metric tons of payload into low-Earth orbit, similar to the lift capacity of the Atlas V rockets the X-37B has launched on the most.<\/p>\n
The Long March 2F\u2019s payload shroud has a diameter of about 13.8 feet (4.2 meters). Imagery of the fairing wreckage recovered after the Chinese spaceplane launch last year showed unusual extensions on each side of the shroud. These may have been added to allow the wings of a spaceplane similar to the X-37B to fit inside the Long March 2F fairing.<\/p>\n
This imagery was posted on YouTube last year.<\/p>\n