spaceplane
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Virgin Galactic Completes Final Glide Flight and Readies for Rocket-Powered Spaceflight
Virgin Galactic appears to be one step closer to resuming its space tourism services. The company announced today a successful suborbital test of the VSS Unity spaceplane and hopes to begin rocket-powered spaceflight tests in the coming months.
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New Zealand’s Wicked Spaceplane Approved for Suborbital Test Flights
Dawn Aerospace CEO Stefan Powell announced today that the company’s Mk-II Aurora spaceplane has received approval from the Civil Aviation Authority of New Zealand for rocket-powered flight. The company is now ready to test the vehicle’s rocket engines with flights beginning next month.
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China’s Wayward Rocket Has Disintegrated Over the Pacific Ocean
The booster from a Chinese Long March 5B rocket reentered Earth’s atmosphere at 6:01 a.m. ET Friday, with debris falling west of the Mexican coast. There are no reports of injuries, but the 22-metric-ton core stage threatened populated areas during its final orbit.
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This Reusable Space Freighter Would ‘Open the Door’ to European Space Exploration
French aerospace company ArianeGroup has revealed a concept for a reusable upper stage spacecraft that would be capable of delivering heavy payloads to space and carry out crewed missions before landing vertically back on Earth.