China's Mysterious 'Spaceplane': The Dragon's New Wings in Orbit and Preparations for Future Space Warfare
What is China's reusable spacecraft doing in Earth's orbit? An in-depth analysis of technology similar to America's X-37B and its potential implications for India.
A quiet but extremely significant war is currently underway in the field of space science, in which China is demonstrating its covert capabilities. Recently, the US Defense Intelligence Agency confirmed by releasing a satellite image that China's experimental reusable spaceplane is active in Earth's orbit. This vehicle shares a design similar to America's highly classified X-37B spaceplane, indicating that China has now succeeded in developing vehicles capable of remaining in space for long durations and returning to Earth.
A spaceplane is a remarkable vehicle that can fly and glide in Earth's atmosphere like a conventional aircraft with wings, while functioning like a spacecraft in outer space. According to Wikipedia reports, there are only four spaceplanes in the world to date that have been successfully launched into orbit, re-entered Earth's atmosphere, and landed safely. This list includes America's Space Shuttle, Russia's Buran, America's X-37, and China's Shenlong.
China's mysterious spacecraft, known as 'Shenlong' or 'Divine Dragon', has been launched a total of 4 times between the years 2020 and 2026. This vehicle is sent into space by China's Long March 2F rocket. The China National Space Administration (CNSA) releases very little information about this project, which has led to much speculation globally regarding the purpose of this vehicle. Whether it is intended solely for scientific experiments or if it harbors hidden military capabilities remains a major question.
| Name | Country | Status | Launch method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Space Shuttle | USA | Retired | Vertical (rocket) |
| Buran | Russia | Cancelled | Vertical (rocket) |
| X-37B | USA | Active | Vertical (rocket) |
| Shenlong | China | Active (experimental) | Vertical (rocket) |
Understanding how a spaceplane works is very interesting. It launches vertically like a rocket, but when it returns to Earth, it lands horizontally on a runway like a conventional aircraft. The biggest challenge in this process is the intense heat generated during re-entry into the atmosphere. When a vehicle descends from orbit toward Earth, its speed is extremely high. To protect against the heat generated by this speed, a thermal protection system, or heat shield, is installed on it.
According to Wikipedia data, the surface temperature of the American space shuttle would reach 1,650 °C (3,000 °F) during re-entry, which is higher than the melting point of steel. It is likely that China's new spaceplane is also constructed from similar advanced materials. Once they enter the atmosphere, these vehicles descend like gliders using aerodynamic control surfaces, which are wings used to change direction in the air. Notably, vehicles like the space shuttle do not use their engines during landing, but instead reach the runway by utilizing only their momentum and air resistance.
- Vertical LaunchThe vehicle is launched vertically by attaching it to the top of or alongside a conventional rocket.
- Orbital OperationsAfter reaching orbit, it gains energy through solar panels and performs experiments or satellite deployment tasks.
- Re-entryUpon mission completion, it enters the atmosphere, where thermal tiles protect it from 1,650 degrees of heat.
- Horizontal LandingIt flies like a glider in the atmosphere and lands on a runway like a normal aircraft.
China is not stopping at just Shenlong. Another reusable spaceplane named 'Haolong' is being developed by the Chengdu Aircraft Research and Design Institute. This vehicle is specifically designed to deliver cargo to China's 'Tiangong' space station. It has a length of 10 meters, a width of 8 meters, and is capable of carrying a payload of 1.8 tons. Its wings are of the folding type, which helps it fit inside a rocket.
India is not lagging behind in this race either. The Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) is currently working on a Reusable Launch Vehicle (RLV). In April 2023, ISRO conducted a significant test at Chitradurga in Karnataka, in which a small-scale spaceplane prototype was released from a height of 4.5 km by a Chinook helicopter. The vehicle autonomously glided and successfully landed on a runway. India's goal is to build a vehicle that possesses the capabilities of both a rocket and an airplane, and which can reduce the cost of space travel.
The biggest advantage of reusable spaceplanes is their cost. Traditional rockets become useless after being used once, whereas spaceplanes can be used repeatedly. However, their design and maintenance are extremely complex and expensive. America's X-37B has spent thousands of days in space so far. What it does there remains a mystery, but experts believe it is used to deploy spy satellites, test new sensors, or keep an eye on the satellites of other countries. China's Shenlong is also believed to possess similar capabilities.
China's space agency, the CNSA, was established in 1993 and has achieved milestones such as landing on the far side of the Moon (Chang'e 4) and landing a rover on Mars (Tianwen-1) within a very short period. The CNSA is currently expanding the Tiangong space station and plans to add more new modules by 2025. Spaceplanes like Haolong will become an affordable and rapid means of transport for this space station. Although Russia's Buran project may have been shut down, its design remains an inspiration for modern spaceplanes even today.
In the future, spaceplanes could be used not only for cargo but also to transport passengers from one end of the Earth to the other very quickly. New Zealand-based company Dawn Aerospace is currently developing a suborbital spaceplane named 'Mk-II Aurora,' which set a record in November 2024 by breaking the sound barrier (Mach 1.12). This demonstrates that private companies are now also playing a major role in this sector.
For the general public, this technology means that services like satellite internet, weather forecasting, and GPS will become cheaper and more accurate in the future. However, this growing competition in space also increases the risks of a 'Space War.' China's mysterious spaceplane is evidence that battlefields are no longer limited to land or sea, but have extended to Earth's orbit. For India, this is both a warning and an opportunity to accelerate its own RLV project.
In conclusion, China's experimental spaceplane is not just an aircraft, but a symbol of China's growing technological strength. Although its details have been kept secret, its very presence signals the beginning of a new era of space science, where vehicles will be able to move freely between Earth and space, and outer space will truly become a new address for humanity.
