Stock Quotes by SpaceNews: SpaceNews 922.3929 0.00% ATK 79.85 +0.47% ASTC 0.7729 +0.38% BAESY 24.32 0.00% BA 103.03 +1.18% CMTL 26.40 -0.08% DGI 31.44 +4.04% SATS 39.88 +0.86% GY 15.96 +4.38% GEOY 0.00 N/A GILT 5.63 +0.54% GSAT 0.60 0.00% GCOM 12.92 +0.62% HRS 49.85 +0.06% IRDM 7.15 -1.38% LMT 108.27 +0.53% LORL 62.95 +1.22% NOC 83.67 +0.95% ORBC 4.25 0.00% ORB 18.00 +1.01% RTN 67.78 +0.55% RRST 8.00 -1.23% SIRI 3.34 +2.14% THLEF 46.90 0.00% TRMB 26.45 +0.76% UTX 94.98 +1.02% VSAT 71.52 +1.59%

China's Mystery Space Plane Project Stirs Up Questions

Source: Space.com | Nov. 12, 2012

China's Shenlong prototype spaceplane being carried by an H-6 bomber. Credit: Photo courtesy of Space.com

As the next secretive flight of the U.S. Air Force's robotic X-37B mini-shuttle draws closer, analysts are keeping a close eye on China’s own potential space plane, the Shenlong.

Last year several Chinese media outlets reported a test flight of the Shenlong space plane that apparently included its airdrop from an H-6 bomber. But the nature of the Shenlong project's testing, as well as what the robot vehicle truly represents, remains sketchy.

Several China watchers in the U.S. have taken a stab at what the Shenlong (Mandarin for "Divine Dragon) might mean, with some experts conjecturing that the craft is simply a tit-for-tat response to the unmanned X-37B space plane.