BEIJING: An experimental Chinese spacecraft returned to Earth on Monday after spending 276 days in orbit. This mission was significant since it tested China’s reusable space technologies.
According to state media, the unmanned spacecraft returned to the Jiuquan launch facility in northwest China on Monday as planned.
No information was provided on the nature of the spacecraft, the technology it tested, its altitude, or the locations of its orbits since its launch in early August 2022. The public has not yet seen any images of the craft.
According to official media, the test represents a”important” advance in China’s study of reusable spacecraft technology that will offer a more practical and affordable option to launch next space missions.
Similar spacecraft was flown to the edge of space in 2021 and returned to Earth on the same day in a mission that was also kept entirely secret.
According to China’s leading space contractor at the time, it touched down “horizontally” on Earth.
Chinese social media commentators have conjectured that Beijing has been working on a spacecraft similar to the U.S. Air Force’s X-37B, an autonomous spaceplane that can stay in orbit for years.
In November last year, the uncrewed and reusable X-37B returned to Earth in its sixth and latest mission after spending more than 900 days in orbit.
