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At around 3 p.m. ET on May 24,China ’s mysteriousShenlong outer space planereleased an unnamed flying target 372 miles ( 600 km ) above Earth ’s airfoil . expert outside China do n’t get laid precisely what the object is , but they believe it may be a small orbiter or a while of ironware ejected before the craft is scheduled to deorbit .
The U.S. Space Force has been dog the outer space plane since it set up aboard a Long March 2F rocket from Jiuquan Launch Center on Dec. 14 . Little is jazz about the craft , although it seem to be similar to the clandestineBoeing X-37B space planedeveloped by the U.S. , which is up to of making years - long excursions into orbit . China ’s secret space plane first launched in 2020 and remained in area for just two day . However , it stay aloft for 276 Day during its second voyage , which begin in previous 2022 .
An illustration of China’s secretive Shenlong space plane in orbit.
Shenlong ( which means " Divine Dragon " ) deployedsix little objects shortly after launchlast yr ; each seem to be emitting some kind of signaling . So far , Chinese officials have continue tightlipped about the aeroplane and its activities , and have not addressed the nature of the whodunit object or even acknowledged them .
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Meanwhile , the U.S. military ’s X-37B space planer is also in Earth ’s orbit . The craft launch on Dec. 28 on aSpaceXFalcon Heavy rocket . The fact that the two missions are engage simultaneously is " believably no co-occurrence , " Space Force Chief of Space Operations B. Chance Saltzman toldAir & Space Forces magazine .
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Perhaps unsurprisingly , China ’s state - run media outlets have not indicated any military program for the infinite plane . " After operating in orbit for a period of time , the experimental ballistic capsule will return to the designated landing internet site in China , " Xinhua reported , according to Gizmodo . " During this period , it will carry out reusable technology verification and space science experiment as plan , providing proficient support of the peaceable use of infinite . "
recyclable space planes have many potential commercial and scientific applications , including carrying passengers and launch artificial satellite more efficiently . Nevertheless , the Space Force will continue to supervise the Shenlong mission until it returns to Earth .
