Posted: Sun, Dec 17, 2023, 10:06 AM ET (1506 GMT)
China launched a secretive spaceplane Thursday. A Long March 2F rocket lifted off at about 10:00 am EST (1500 GMT from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center, although Chinese officials did not provide an exact liftoff time or many other details about the launch. The launch placed into orbit what China calls a "reusable test spacecraft" thought to be similar in form and function to the U.S. Space Force's X-37B spaceplane. The launch took place just over seven months after the vehicle returned from a 276-day mission in orbit.

Related Links:

•  SpaceNews article
•  Space.com article
•  Xinhua article